


Life Is...

by Ragemore61



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, F/F, Fantasy, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-31
Updated: 2017-05-31
Packaged: 2018-11-07 04:34:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 26,359
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11051424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ragemore61/pseuds/Ragemore61
Summary: This story takes place some time after episode 5. Chloe made a choice, she sacrificed herself for Arcadia Bay. Max was left with the grief and is learning to cope with the loss of her best friend, and what could have been more than that. Can Max ever move on from Chloe and get past the pain? Fate may have other plans for Max Caulfield.





	1. Life is Temporary

She was standing at the edge of a cliff, blue eyes watching over her childhood hometown, Arcadia Bay. She closed them and enjoyed the soft breeze, the smell of the sea salt air invaded her senses. She could hear the soft crashing of waves from the shorelines. It was a peaceful day.

With a sigh she walked away from the cliff and sat down on the lone bench, leaning her back against it she continued to overlook the view.

"You look broody as ever." A voice said, the tone was light and carefree.

The girl was sitting next to her, a cigarette between smiling lips. She looked exactly the same. The beanie with the short, blue hair sticking out from underneath with messy bangs. The same ripped jeans and combat boots, she still wore her white tank-top with the black jacket over it. Not to mention her choice of accessories, the studded wristbands wrapped around her arm and the trio of bullets that hung around her neck as a necklace. Her typical punker girl look.

"It's nice seeing you again, Chloe…" She said to the girl, finally glancing to the side to take in the sight of her best friend.

"Today's your b-day, ain't it?" Chloe mentioned back with a puff of smoke, "You should be hyped, Max."

"I don't get excited about birthdays anymore." Max confessed, she snorted at the look of disbelief on Chloe's face.

"It's not just any birthday and you know it!" Chloe reprimanded, she huffed while putting out the cigarette butt into the dirt.

"Whatever." Max smirked in amusement before turning her gaze back towards the horizon, staring at the sunset that never sets.

"Aren't you gonna ask me what I got you?" Chloe inquired in a teasing tone, setting the bait for Max to bite.

Though Max knew better than to fall for it and feigned disinterest, "Nope, not really all that curious."

"...Hey, nerd." Chloe called out in a now serious voice, blue eyes staring straight at the girl intensely.

Max turned to face her, she noticed Chloe had scooched up closer to her on the bench. Before she could ask what was up, Chloe had leaned in and pressed her lips against Max's. Initiating a tender, chaste kiss. Max felt her heart jump in shock, not at all expecting that. Her pulse quickened when Chloe cupped her cheek with a hand, causing Max to sigh into the kiss. She felt herself melt as Chloe moved her lips against her own ones into a second slow kiss.

Chloe whispered as their lips parted from each other, "Happy birthday, Max."

* * *

**September 21st, 2016**

**Seattle City**

**Max's Room, 8:00 AM**

_Beep… Beep… Beep_.

With a breath of annoyance she reached over and shut off the blaring alarm clock that sat on the nightstand, she momentarily checked the hour. It was only eight in the morning, a bit early but she had deliberately set that time to get an early start on the day. Though after that dream with Chloe, she felt like staying in bed thinking about it. Max touched her own lips, she could almost taste the smoke from Chloe's cigarette in that kiss. With fingers still on her mouth, Max stared up at the ceiling as she laid there in bed and rewinded the memories of the dream in her head over again.

"Chloe…" Max said the name out loud. She knew it was only a dream, but it felt so real to her.

Glancing back towards the digital clock she realized she had stayed in bed for a whole hour, she needed to get up.

Mindlessly she slipped out of bed and went to the bathroom, she stood in front of the mirror with hands holding on to the sink's sides. She took a long, hard look at herself. Her hair had grown out over time, the tips of its brown strands reached just above her shoulder blades. She noticed dark circles forming under her eyes, there have been plenty of nights where she had no sleep. Last night was a rare treat, only ever seems to be a restful night whenever Chloe decided to enter her dreams.

When she was done brushing her teeth, she went back into her room and dressed herself. A green t-shirt was put on, along with a pair of blue, ripped jeans. She tied the laces of her black Vans tightly, then stopped when something caught her eye. Glancing down at her right hand she smiled fondly at the two studded wrist bands. She allowed herself to cheer up, trying her best to be in a good mood before heading downstairs to the kitchen and was greeted by her parents' smiling faces.

Her father, Ryan, smiled warmly from the table he sat in, "Made your favorite, Belgian Waffles."

She smiled at him back, "Thanks, dad."

Her mother, Vanessa, could not contain herself, she grabbed Max into a bear-hug, "Happy 21st birthday, Maxine!"

Max hugged her mom back, chuckling slightly at her mother's clinging. The three of them sat at the table together and ate breakfast contently.

She didn't want to stay home for too long, after breakfast Max had decided to visit the studio at her University to go over some of her work. Her parents protested, concerned for Max's lack of interest in celebrating her birthday. She assured them that she was not going to bury herself into her work, she had an appointment set up for her own personal birthday present later on. Before her parents would question her further about this supposed appointment, Max ran off and got into her car.

She was now at the studio, happy to see she had the place to herself and that there were no other students roaming about. Even now at this age, Max still found it difficult to make friends. Not because of her awkwardness, but her distrust in getting close to anyone ever. She barely spoke to Kristen and Fernando when she first returned. Even though she had left, students from Blackwell would message her on and off. More so Kate, she was so concerned for Max. She remembered how empty and hollowed out she was the first few days of living with the fact of Chloe's death. She had lost so much hope.

Until recently she started her studies a few months ago after taking her GED. She worked up the nerve to get back into photography, she didn't feel as anxious anymore entering an academic building. It had taken time for her to build up the confidence for it. Ever since the incident at Blackwell Academy back in Oregon, Arcadia Bay, she had not stepped into or even gotten near a school. She had immediately dropped out when Chloe died, she fell into depression and lost all motivation. She went back to Seattle with her parents the day after the funeral. Her parents, who did all they could to console her, were in distraught over the loss of Chloe Price. They were even further shocked to have found out that such a prestigious school was allowing a sadistic psychopath like Mark Jefferson work there, drugging students from under their noses. Far worse things he had done, Max knew that all too well. She could never forget the things she had experienced during those multiple timelines.

Letting out a breath, she shook her head. Attempting to keep her mind from wandering back into the horrific past she had left behind. She sat at a desk and plugged in her equipment. Another sign of her growth and change, she had actually started giving digital photography a chance. She saw a few advantages to it that she soon learned to appreciate. Despite this she still carried her analog camera. After a few hours of rummaging through her pictures, she stretched out in her seat and decided that it was time for her to head out. It was getting close to six PM, she needed to leave now if she wanted to make it to her appointment on time.

Driving further downtown in Seattle, Max parked up near a shop. The place was called Subculture, it's neon sign blinking 'open' invitingly for clients to enter. She breathed out, she had been doing that a lot today. Though this time it was due to nervousness, she wondered if this was even a good idea.

"No way, no backing out now. What would Chloe think? That you're chickenshit, that's what!" Max laughed to herself, she could almost hear the blue haired punk yelling at her and pulling her out of the car.

As if she had been actually pulled out, she suddenly found herself standing in front of the entrance door. With one last mental push she went inside.

The receptionist was sitting behind the counter, magazine in hand with a bored look in her eyes. Max had stood there for almost three minutes, she had even cleared her throat to announce her presence to the woman.

She had blonde hair flipped to the side, with the side of her head shaven. She wore a red sleeveless shirt with a low dip in the collar, showing off her collarbones and cleavage a bit. Though it was to display the lines and swirls of a tattoo that ran down the neck along her chest area. The tattoo spread down her shoulders and around her arms until they reached her wrists. The woman was a bit intimidating to Max, especially when she glanced up from the magazine to give her an annoyed look.

"We don't ink minors, get lost." She told off to Max, her voice was rough and deep.

"I'm not a minor, I have an appointment here." Max frowned back at her with arms crossed, "I had it set to 6:30 today in fact."

At this the woman put away the magazine, a slender eyebrow arched in intrigue. "Is that so? Hmm…" She went to the PC that was set up at the counter and clicked at the mouse. "What's your name, kid?"

Max narrowed her eyes at the word 'kid.' She held back any retort and answered politely, "Max Caulfield."

The receptionist's eyes widened slightly down at the screen, "You're… Lane's client?" She asked, a bit of surprise hidden in her tone.

"Uh, yeah? I came by here a few months ago. It was hard getting an appointment in, Lane's work is pretty famous around the area. Not surprised if no one here remembers me." Max commented, feeling a bit peeved at the woman's attitude.

"Kyra, lay off the girl, will ya?" Another woman stepped out from the back of the shop, moving the curtain of beads that obscured the interior of the parlor. Her hair was jet black and long, her demeanor much more cool and polite than the other. She was also tattoo'd, oddly enough in the face. Thin black lines ran down from under her eyes down half way of both the cheeks.

Ignoring Kyra's glare, she finally looked over to Max. Pushing up a pair of glasses up the bridge of her nose, she hooked an arm over the shorter girl's shoulder and guided her further inside the shop.

"Max, it's impossible for me to forget any of my clients. Especially you, your design caught my attention after all. To be honest, I'm very excited to get it started on you."

"R-Really?" Max asked in confusion, suddenly feeling bashful she scratched the back of her head. "I mean, it was just an old doodle I showed you. I didn't think it was that good."

"Nonsense!" Lane got Max to sit down on the black leather recliner chairs, "You've got an eye for art, guess being a photographer helps with that." She mentioned casually as she began to line up the colored inks she was to use on Max. She as well armed her tattoo machine and made sure everything was sanitized and removed some of the clean needles from their packages.

Max stared at Lane for a moment, "You know I'm a photographer?"

Lane looked over to Max with a smile, "Of course! You mentioned it the first time you came in with your design ideas. Don't remember?"

"Oh, I guess I must have." Max looked over at the set up, she hated needles. Especially syringes. Reminds her of how Jefferson would stab her in the neck multiple times to drug her, she felt a shiver of disgust roll down her back. She shouldn't think about him and the Dark Room. She was here for her own pleasure, she should be excited and happy instead.

"I hope I got your color ideas down, take a look and let me know if I got anything wrong or if you'd like to change anything. Now is the time, since… Ya know, it's all permanent and stuff." Lane joked as she gestured to the small ink containers lined up on a table near Max's seat.

"No, it's all perfect. Just like I thought it to be." Max praised Lane's close attention to detail on her specific requests.

"Good! Let's get to it then, you wanted it on your left forearm, yeah?" She confirmed before wiping Max's forearm down with an alcohol wipe. She then grabbed the tattoo that was ready to be traced on against Max's skin, carefully peeling off the paper, Lane made sure every detail showed good and wrapped around all of Max's forearm perfectly.

It had only been an hour and some minutes in, and Max was starting to feel anxious. The stinging of the needle penetrating her skin didn't hurt too bad, but it can certainly drive her insane. Especially that buzzing sound.

"I know this is uncomfortable, this is your first tattoo after all." Lane mentioned as she kept her sights on Max's forearm, still hard at work on the tattoo. The line work had been done and she had started to apply the colors on it. "You haven't moved an inch though, so you're doing awesome. Hey, Kyra?" She called out loud enough for the blonde to hear her, "Can you get some water for us? I'm sure Maxie here is dying of thirst from all this blood loss." She teased with a grin, which grew wider when Max looked at her with panic.

"You said no one ever bled out doing this!"

Chuckling Lane sat back and eyed the completed tattoo, she cleaned up the ink excess and blood. She then applied a bit of ointment to help with the healing process.

"I'm not going to lie, but this is one of my favorite pieces yet." Lane checked her work over on the forearm sleeve.

Max's forearm was entirely covered by green vines and leaves. Blue and lilac colored flowers grew out of the vines, in between them a black ribbon swirled along the arm. There were some detailed blue butterflies fluttering around her skin, some lone ones reached up close to the inside of her elbow. The highlights on the wings were so perfect, they almost looked like they were glowing. Within the tattoo the skull of a deer laid in the bed of flowers, just like how Max wanted it based on her design.

Kyra walked in with two bottled waters, she noticed the tattoo on Max's arm. She was even impressed by it, "Wow…"

"Go check yourself out in the mirror over there, Max." Lane encouraged her with a warm smile as Max stood up from the chair.

The more she looked at it in the mirror, the more Max felt a tightness in her chest. Those blue butterflies reminded her so much of Chloe's tattoo, a lone tear ran down her cheek. She wondered how much Chloe would have liked her tattoo.

Lane walked up to her, a hand laid on Max's shoulder. "This tattoo means a lot to you, doesn't it?"

"It means that life is…so temporary." Max choked on a sob, she reeled her emotions back in and looked away from the mirror while wiping her tears away with the back of her hand.

Lane hummed in thought at that, "That's very true, Max. Though that tattoo there is not at all temporary. I hope you like it enough."

"I-I love it, thank you so much for this. Really…"

The tattoo artist pushed her glasses up her nose, a shy smile on her lips. "Any time, let's get you set up with a kit to keep your tattoo clean while it heals. Shall we?"

Max nodded, she trailed close behind Lane out to the front counter. Not noticing the look in Kyra's face.

"...This will be a difficult one." She said under her breath as she followed them out.


	2. Life is A Lie

**October 6th, 2016**

**Seattle City**

**University, 10:45 AM**

Vanessa and Ryan were thoroughly surprised at their daughter's tattoo, it was very odd to them and it would take time to get use to. Though they understood this might be a good thing for Max, if it gave her a boost of confidence and provided some comfort for her, they were okay with it. It had been a couple of weeks now since she had gotten the inked art on her skin, October was now rolling through and people have started to bust out their Halloween decorations. Max had kept herself busy with her studies, as per usual she avoided any social activities or interactions with other students. Despite it being a large University, a lot of the students have grown to know _of_ Max, especially in her Photography class. Max had been approached several times by students, even asked out on dates more than a few occasions. Much to Max's dismay, she politely declined the offer every time.

Around the class the students would refer to Max as aloof and mysterious. She hadn't ever gotten this kind of attention during high school. It was very bizarre to her, in time she learned to ignore it. On the back of her mind she always thought what it would be like to date, she hadn't really attempted but at times where she thought about it only one person came to mind. How would it feel like to be with Chloe in that aspect? She had a taste of their friendship as kids, and after five years they met again to once more be proven that they've always had a strong connection. Putting aside the complications, putting aside the drama and insanity of time traveling. Max felt absolute joy when she was around Chloe, she was sure that the blue haired girl felt the same. Despite the baggage of losing contact with each other for so long, Chloe still treated her as her best friend. Max momentarily paused in her aim, camera over her face as she was taking a few shots of the model in front of her.

" _Just how long had Chloe kept deep feelings from me? How long have_ _ **I**_ _had those same feelings for her?"_ She thought, maybe these feelings didn't develop until they had that insane week together. Maybe the shock and trauma of near death experiences drove them to each other. It wasn't the first time she contemplated these possibilities. Apart from suffering the loss of her best friend, she was also left with the longing and desire to know more of these feelings. She would have done anything to get a chance with Chloe and explore those feelings together. She could only imagine a relationship with Chloe would have been just as, if not more intense than their basic friendship. What she would give to get answers for all of these questions, to silence all these painful what if's. She would have sacrificed that whole town for Chloe, as horrible as that might sound. When Max thought it over these past few years, she questioned herself just how insane she was to allow all those deaths for just one girl. Did it make her into a bad person? Wouldn't it make her a murderer? Max shuddered at that idea, even more when she would have gladly taken up the guilt for Chloe.

"Ms. Caulfield, are you alright?" The class teacher asked. Giving the student a concerned and inquiring stare. Max had stayed still in the middle of a photo shoot for three minutes too long.

Snapping out of her deep thoughts she smiled embarrassingly back at the teacher. "S-Sorry, guess skipping out on that coffee was a bad idea."

The teacher chuckled, "It's alright, we have been at it for awhile. I believe we're done for today, your portfolio is coming along great. I suggest you go out and take shots of nature, give it whatever twist you like." He advised her, nodding to the model to relax from their pose.

"If it's okay, I'd like to stay for a few to go over these pictures."

"Take all the time you need." encouraged her as he packed up his notes and bag. The model had already left to get dressed up and leave as well. Before stepping out the exit he stopped and looked over his shoulder, "I'm sure I don't need to remind you—"

"Don't limit yourself to a studio, go out and capture the outside world." Max quoted her teacher, without missing a beat.

"Excellent! I have no worries about you then." praised her and stepped out the door.

"Awesome session today, Max." The model, now in casual clothing, walked by Max as the photographer sat down behind a computer. "See ya around." She waved goodbye and let herself out.

Now Max was alone in the studio, she went through her pictures and filed the ones she kept while discarding others that didn't meet her expectation. She was trying to keep herself busy and avoid all these thoughts about Arcadia Bay, Chloe, her unresolved feelings, everything. Time went by, she had already printed out copies of today's pictures and added them into her portfolio. She checked the time on her phone, it was already 12:30 PM. Her school day was over, she was glad that all her other classes were mornings.

Packing up her things, she slung her backpack over the shoulder and stopped for a moment when her phone chirped. She had just gotten a text, to her surprise it was from Lane.

**Lane: Hey, Max! Hope your tattoo healed up nicely. Just wanted to let you know about this awesome event going on for tattoo enthusiasts. We had some local photographer signed up to take pictures of the body art but they bailed on us last minute. It's kind of an invite but also a job offer, you'll be paid for the hour and free food is included! Let me know if you're interested ;)**

Max resisted the urge to reply with 'No emoji!' She was surprised that Lane would have thought of her to offer a paid job. She was sure the tattoo artist was aware of Max still in school for photography, she isn't a professional. Thinking about declining the offer she received another message from Lane.

**Lane: You take pics like a pro, so I'm confident you're the gal for the job. Just saying!**

Max laughed at the message, it was so odd that the tattoo artist could read her even though they barely know each other. Max thought it over again, she was needing some extra cash in her pockets so it wouldn't do her any harm to take the odd job. More importantly, she needed a distraction from her memories of Arcadia Bay. Even from Chloe.

**Max: I'm sold, when does the event start?**

* * *

Max had opted going out to the public park, she had plenty of time to get ready for the event later tonight. She decided to warm up her skills and take pictures of the squirrels and birds. Max was enjoying her day outside, being out in the park seeing all these live critters gave her a sense of peace and calm.

Walking along the runner's trail Max stopped near a small bush that was blooming with flowers, laying on one of the petals a ladybug rested there. Smiling to herself she got on one knee, not caring about getting dirt on her jeans. She moved carefully and slowly towards her new subject, camera ready on sight. The soft hiss of lens zooming in and focusing on the image, a click and a snap. Max looked down at the screen and hummed at the picture.

While she was still staring at the new addition to her collection, Max saw a streak of blue flutter over her peripherals. Frantically Max stood and looked to the side in a fright, did she really see that? She could have sworn she saw blue wings, ones that were way too familiar. Looking around her immediate surroundings, she saw no sign of it.

She held a hand over her forehead, brushing back her long bangs over her head as she scratched it. " _I think I've had enough of this place."_

* * *

 

Getting back home, Max stepped out of her car while lugging her backpack over the shoulder.

"Maxine, is that you?" Vanessa called out when the front door was opened, she mumbled 'One moment' into the phone she was cradling against her ear.

"What's up, mom?" Max went into the kitchen where Vanessa was, tilting her head to the side as she waited for her mom to finish the conversation on the phone.

"Of course, I understand… She's right here with me." Vanessa had a sad smile on her face as she brought the phone down and offered it towards Max.

"It's Joyce."

"O-Oh…" Max hesitated before grabbing the phone, "H-Hi, Joyce. It's good hearing you again."

"Likewise, Max. It certainly has been a while."

Max held back a wince, she could hear how withered and tired Joyce was.

Joyce Price, Chloe's mother. She would call from time to time, just to check on Max and keep up with how the girl was doing. She had called up the Caulfield residence today to let Max know that she had found some old pictures of young Max and Chloe from their childhood. She was kind enough to mail them out to Seattle.

The day of the funeral, before Max left. Joyce had given her a box full of Chloe's trinkets and belongings. Things she was sure her daughter would have wanted her best friend to have. Like the two studded wristbands she was currently wearing. Joyce guessed that Max would not mind having more pictures of her childhood with Chloe.

"Thank you, Joyce." Max said with a bit of cheer in her tone, "It truly means a lot, but I bet you already knew that."

"I know a lot of things, girly." Joyce chuckled faintly, her southern twang showing. "Call me when those pictures get to ya. I wish we could catch up, but my shift starts soon."

" _I can't believe it. Joyce still works at the diner?"_ Max thought in amazement.

The call ended after their goodbyes, hanging up the phone she breathed out and turned to her mother. Who was leaning against the kitchen counter with thin lips, she was worried that Max might revert to a depressive state again.

"Are you okay, honey?" She asked.

"I'm okay, promise." Max gave her assurance, quirking her lips up a bit to show she wasn't breaking down.

Announcing that she was going to her room, Vanessa tried to stop her with another question.

"Is there anything you'd like me to make for dinner?"

Max was already halfway up the stairs towards her sanctuary, "Not really, I'm actually going out tonight. So don't worry!"

Vanessa stopped with a bewildered look in her eyes and then shook her head with a growing smile on her face. The idea of her daughter finally going out and acting like her age bringing a sense of relief to her.

* * *

**Somewhere downtown, 8:00 PM**

There was a sign covering the glass display window. "Subculture's Skin Stigma."

Max eyed it suspiciously, it wasn't exactly an inviting title for an open to the public event. Though she could see the irony in it, in this time of age tattoos are a form of art and expression. Not at all viewed as a shameful taboo. Lane had emailed her details about it for Max to learn more, she never noticed the name of the event was so morbid. The purpose of the event was to allow both artists and skin art subjects to gather, it's generally to show off their ink work. Perhaps gain some clientele for some artist, or even for the subject to gain a new addition to their skin.

Lane and Kyra were asked every year to arrange the event, they always had a specific go to photographer for these events to take pictures to post on their website. Now here was Max instead, standing in front of the entrance like a lost child.

" _Come on, I'm being ridiculous. It's just a job, I've taken pictures for money plenty of times. What is up with this vibe I'm getting?"_ Max mentally questioned herself, just as she reached a hand out for the door's handle it opened up swiftly enough that her hair blew back slightly.

A hand had grabbed her by the arm and yanked her inside while slamming the door shut behind her. Max stumbled forward with a yelp, with her hair covering the side of her face shocked blue eyes glanced up to find a smirking Lane.

"So sorry, but I couldn't help myself." Lane said chuckling, "Just watching you stand there for so long gave me anxiety." She explained with a tease, laughing even further when Max stood up straight with a flustered look on her face.

Brushing her hair out of her eye, Max took a quick look over of Lane. The woman looked different without the glasses, she had a clear view of light brown eyes. Her black hair was still loose and messy. She wore black leather pants with a pair of combat boots, her torso covered by a navy blue muscle shirt.

"You look like you're ready to party." Max commented, attempting to divert her embarrassment on the other woman instead.

"Technically it is, and I _**am**_ off work. I'm only a humble hostess for tonight's festivities…" Lane also eyed Max's choice of attire. The Photographer wore a navy blue flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up her elbows, a black t-shirt was under it with tiny little grey skulls rolling around the collar area. Her jeans were pale blue and faded with random tears, on her feet Max wore beaten up chucks to complete the outfit. Lane hummed to herself when she glanced at Max's wristbands.

"You look very punk-nerd chic today. I dig it." She winked at Max who only laughed nervously in response.

"Try not to work too hard and have some fun." Lane winked before guiding the Photographer into the event, the inside of the building was large enough. Two stories worth of vendors and tattoo stands where many people laid out in seats getting their ink on. Some alternative punk-rock music played loudly for all to hear as everyone was enjoying their time at the event. Be it them socializing or getting tattooed.

Max immediately went to work, all of these people were beautiful in their own ways. More so the tattoos that littered their bodies. She snapped several pictures in every angle possible, making sure the moment was just right and the lighting was perfect. She made a mental note to ask Lane if it was at all possible for Max to use some of the work she's doing to add in her portfolio. Seeing all of these tattooed and pierced people was opening Max's mind to many ideas for it. She was sure her professor would enjoy these types of pictures.

Getting herself lost in the crowd, lost in the soft shutters of her camera she failed to notice a certain blonde looking at her.

Kyra was nursing a drink, her green eyes watching Max at work very closely. Noticing the slightest of smiles on the girl's lips while snapping pictures. She could tell that the Photographer was passionate about her job, she was sure that was a good sign. But would passion be enough?

Interrupting her thoughts Lane had appeared. She almost slid up next to Kyra, leaning herself against the wall as she admired her. Kyra was wearing black jeans that hugged her legs snugly, the fabric of it was all ripped up over her thighs. As for her top, she wore a black tank-top that fitted her form perfectly. The material of it was sheer enough to be able to see through it and show off her tattoos.

"You look gorgeous." Lane commented with a slow smile.

"Please, don't start." Kyra defused whatever mood Lane was in.

"I can't even compliment you, really?" She stared at Kyra with a bit of hurt, though her tone held some anger.

Kyra refused to fall into their usual arguments, "Pay attention and get to work, Lane. Find me when you're done with this stupid party." She huffed out before walking away, ignoring Lane's hurt expression.

* * *

Max scrolled through her pictures on the digital camera, satisfied with the amount of work she had put in, she finally decided it was time to enjoy the rest of the event. More importantly, claim the free food she was promised.

She scanned through the large mass of people, she hadn't realized just how crowded this place got as the night went on. Walking further into the middle of the ground floor, she heard a loud whistle call. Staring up she saw Lane was up the second floor balcony, along with Kyra next to her, who was looking bored as ever leaning against the railing.

"Hey, Max! Up here!" Lane called out to her while waving.

"Hold on, stay still." Max signaled the two of them that she was about to take a picture of them, it wouldn't be a complete work if she didn't include the event arrangers in the album.

Kyra sighed to herself, while Lane struck a pose next to her.

_Snap!_

Smiling up at them, Max made her way to the second floor, "Y'know, you might get this a lot but you two sorta look cute together." She mentioned to them while showing them the shot she took of the two women.

"Haha, that's odd of you to say…" Lane glanced over to Kyra, seeing the blonde glare at her. As if daring her to say anything further than that.

Max looked over to the rest of the event from where they were standing, amazed at just how many people were here. What struck her interest even more, was finding out that a lot of them were Lane's clients. Some had even flown from across the country and overseas, just to get work done by the artist.

"How long have you been tattooing? It's incredible how many people here know you so well." Max made idle chit-chat while fiddling with her camera.

"It's been too long, if that answers your question." Kyra interjected, nudging Lane's side with an elbow.

"R-right!" Lane stammered before straightening up, she hated this part every time. "It's been _**hella**_ too long."

Max paused with her camera for a moment, eyebrows furrowed deeply when her brain had just processed what she heard. Not many people use that word, at least none she knew. She glanced up to look at Lane and Kyra, when she opened her mouth her words died. Her focus on them blurred, eyes now transfixed on a blue butterfly that fluttered just behind them. The sounds of bustling crowds faded, the music disappeared. Everything was now a deafening silence. All she could hear was the loud beating of her heart that seemed to pound just in time with each wing flap the butterfly made.

Her world became black.

" _You don't know who the fuck I am or who you're messing around with!"_

" _Where'd you get that? What are you doing? Come on, put that thing down!"_

" _Nobody would ever miss your punk-ass, would they?"_

" _Get that gun away from me, psycho!"_

_Bang!_

Max jolted up at the sound of a gunshot, she had woken up laying on the floor. Panting violently she whipped her head around with panicked blue eyes. " _What the fuck is going on?"_ She found herself in a place she thought she'd never see again.

She was back in the Dark Room.

There was no mistaking it, she was now standing in the middle of the pure white set. Camera equipment and tripods were set up around her, the same glass coffee table with the leather black couch was here. She could even see the desk area in the back corner with the computer. The only thing that was missing was her tormentor, Mark Jefferson, which calmed her down for a moment. How had she ended up here? Backing up slowly against the white wall, Max tried to slow her breathing. A million thoughts rushing through her head, " _Did I go back in time? No way, I lost my powers the day Chloe died."_

"Max."

Her eyes snapped up to see Lane and Kyra standing in front of her, still in shock, Max couldn't voice out her confusion. What were they doing here? More and more questions piled up in her mind.

"We know you must be thoroughly scared, and so lost." Kyra stepped up forward, her _red_ eyes looking straight at her emotionless.

"Try to calm down, we'll explain everything. Promise." Lane said softly from behind Kyra, sad _silver_ eyes full of shame.

Max stared at the two of them, her fear slowly ebbed away but her anger began to grow behind it. Hands turning into trembling fists she pushed herself off the wall roughly, "What did you do to me? Did you drug me and drag me over here?" She accused them, multiple scenarios playing in her head at the possibilities of the two women playing a sick joke on her.

"This isn't what you're thinking..." Lane sighed out, she walked past Kyra and got close to the angered Photographer, "We know all about you, what happened to you in Arcadia Bay. We know what happened… Here. In this very room we all stand in."

"H-How?" Max's glare faltered, she doubted that they know enough about what Jefferson did to her. Because it happened in a different timeline, the only way they could have known that is if they were here _when_ it happened.

When she received no answer, Max decided to voice out her next question out of the many swirling around the inside of her skull.

"Who are you?"

Lane stopped her advancement towards Max, she looked back to Kyra who merely looked away from her.

"Don't know how to answer that question, kiddo." Lane admitted honestly when her blonde friend turned away from her. Looking back to Max she shrugged her shoulders, "Trying to explain it to you would either give you one serious headache or drive you to the brink of insanity."

"The latter is what usually happens to most we've tried to explain our existence." Kyra added with a monotone voice, "That kind of knowledge can't be comprehended by the human mind."

Max looked between the two of them, her eyes showing some skepticism. "I'm starting to think this is some real fucked up joke you both are trying to play on me."

Kyra was losing her patience, "Now listen here, you think we came to you willingly?"

"Kyra, hush up." Lane rolled her eyes, she smiled sadly back at Max. "Look, if you really want to make heads or tails about this by knowing more of us… then I'll tell you what I can. Does that sound fair enough?"

Max thought for a moment, she couldn't tell at this point if this truly was a joke or if it was legit. She breathed out heavily and shifted to the side slightly with a hand holding her own arm. "Fine."

"Alright, let's start then." Lane nodded to her and began her explanation. "You asked us who we are, the better question you should be asking is _**what**_ we are."

Max gave them a look of apprehension, she wasn't sure now if she really did want to know now.

Kyra took over part of the conversation, she had made herself comfortable on what use to be Jefferson's couch. "We have had many names throughout history and time. You can only know us as what we are now: The Fates."

That name meant nothing to Max, she held back the urge to walk out on them and forget the whole ordeal but decided she should at least let them finish.

"To make it less shady and short, we're guardians of the sort. We make sure that destiny and sealed fates get carried out to where it's intended." Kyra tried her best to simplify the subject.

"No matter how unfair or horrible it is for some people who don't deserve it." Lane said under her breath with much distaste, earning her a glare from Kyra.

"Lane, I know I don't need to tell you again that—"

" _ **Everything happens for a reason!**_ " She mocked the words she quoted with a scoff, "Just gag me already with that stupid saying…"

"...Moving on." Kyra ignored Lane's outburst, "Max, you are special. Well, you _**were**_ special. You had an ability that not many were chosen to have. The ones before you have abused it in ways that it didn't even matter what natural disasters it would conjure up. Their actions alone was the damage." She stopped with a sigh.

Lane then added with a look of approval towards Max, "You actually tried to use it to help others. You've even stopped a girl from committing suicide with it. Something that was completely unforeseen by us."

The more she heard from them, the more Max came to realize that these two women were for real. First they knew about the events in the Dark Room, her rewind powers and now Kate Marsh? " _My mind is totally being blown right now, I hope I don't go insane like they mentioned before…"_

"That may be true." Kyra interjected with an arched eyebrow, "Although her intentions were good, they were still misguided. The consequences that followed during these fates and destinies being changed on a whim of one person alone caused a lot of distraught in both nature and life. Need I point out all those dying birds and whales? How about that tornado?" She listed it off with fingers as she went on.

"Kyra, knock it off. We're not here to guilt trip Max." Lane crossed her arms while shaking her head. She decided to take over the conversation again, "Ignore her rudeness, we're getting to the point of this. Yes, Max, despite all the good you were doing it did set off a lot of unbalance. What surprised us in the end though, was how you took it all back and brought everything back in order as it should be."

"What… what do you mean?" Max spoke up hesitantly, she looked as if she was spacing out during the whole talk but this time she felt the need to focus more on what she was being told.

"Well…" Lane herself struggled with what she was trying to say.

"You realized your mistake and did what was right." Kyra jumped in to assist Lane, "You saved that town, Max. It was the only thing you could have done, letting go of Chloe—"

"Stop." Max's voice took a dark turn, it was angry yet at the same time pained. "Don't you say her name."

The blonde woman was taken aback by the change in demeanor, though she realized that the subject was still touchy on Max. Kyra inwardly kicked herself, perhaps she was being a bit cold.

"For someone who says they know everything… You don't." Max almost growled out, her form shaking with emotions. "It wasn't _**my**_ choice, it was hers! If it were up to me, I really would have let that damn town get wrecked! You have no idea what you're talking about." At this point Max was hugging herself, her eyes reddening with tears she's been holding back. Turning away from The Fates, she faced the blank wall. Memories of Chloe being shot in the school's bathroom rushing into her mind.

Lane and Kyra looked at each other, genuinely feeling empathy for Max. Lane spoke up after a moment of silence, "Regardless of whose choice it was, it was still made. That brings us back to our reason for being here, I think you'll want to hear this, Max." She said more gently, she could faintly hear Max's breathing. She really did hate seeing people cry, worst part of her job.

Max wiped her face with the sleeve of her shirt, "I'm listening…" She kept her back turned on them, she really didn't want to show them her face right now.

Kyra stood up from the couch, "It has been decided that another opportunity is well enough deserved."

This was Lane's favorite part, she let Kyra continue on. She wanted to pay more attention to Max's reaction, so she waited with a smile that was threatening to break out on her face. Kyra was still talking to Max's back, "We've been allowed to help you, we can get you back and try again."

At this Max turned to face them, a look of bewilderment evident on her features. "You mean… I can save Chloe?"

"You heard her!" Lane chirped up cheerfully, "You'll undergo a lot of difficulties and all the while you'll be tested. To make things interesting, you'll be sent back without your rewind powers. Whatever choices you make, they'll be final. How you react and handle each situation will help determine if you're truly meant to save the Price girl… or not."

Max allowed herself to process what she was being told, she was starting to become lightheaded. She paced around for a moment, running a hand through her messy brown hair. She stops and points at them, "You made it sound like it was a reward at first, but you're saying it's a test?"

"This _**is**_ a gracious reward, don't sound so ungrateful, human." Kyra narrowed her eyes at Max, "When it was decided to give you this kind of chance, it was also keeping account of your Karma. You did just say you would have allowed that town's destruction if it was up to you. That leaves a lot of questions if you even deserve anything. So, yes. You are still to be tested. We're giving you a free pass at that, no tornadoes will be involved."

Lane then added, "You get to make choices without any drastic consequences in nature's balance. None of that would be at risk, the only thing on the line would be—"

"Chloe…" Max whispered out the name faintly. The Fates nodded at Max's conclusion, this only made Max's head reel.

Kyra breathed out as she watched Max struggle, "I'm sure this is a lot to take in, this isn't a choice you have to make right away. You literally have all the time in the world to decide if you want to go through with this. Although this is a gift, it still means you're being made to go back to a time that was more than just unpleasant. To relive those moments yet again can prove to be stressful."

"That's an understatement." Lane remarked dryly, "Hey, can we finish up here? This room is depressing me."

Max stopped her thoughts to look at them in confusion, before she could ask they were already somewhere else. As if she had never been in the Dark Room, they were all standing outside of the tattoo convention building. It was falling apart, the building looked like it had been abandoned for years. " _What the fuck?! It was all an illusion?"_ Max looked at The Fates wide eyed, she wondered just how powerful these two women were.

"Like Kyra said, take your time to think about this real hard." Lane smiled kindly at Max, "I can already guess what your answer will be but we don't want to throw you head first into this. You still got my number, so I'm a text away."

"Do cosmic beings even need smartphones…?" Max did not mean to voice out her dumb thought, it caused Lane to laugh at her.

Kyra rolled her eyes, "You should head home, it's getting late." Without another word she walked away, with Lane stumbling to catch up to her she waved to Max.

She stood there in the middle of the sidewalk, watching them disappear around the corner. Max shivered, she was unsure if it was the cold night air or if it was her body still catching up from all the shock she had experienced tonight.

* * *

Finally back home, Max quietly made her way inside the house and up the stairs. Her parents must have been fast asleep, the whole house was dark. It must have been at least past 12 AM, had she really spent that much time with The Fates?

Dragging on heavy feet, she made it to her room. Kicking off her shoes carelessly she flopped into bed face first, a tired groan escaped her as she nuzzled further into a pillow. After a few long moments of laying face down motionless, Max shifted to lay on her back, her blue eyes staring up at the ceiling.

" _...This is all too insane, so many questions still unanswered. Knowing now that everything that goes on in this world… it's all set in stone and decided by someone…_ _ **something**_ … _Is life just one big lie?"_

Max looked to the side of her nightstand and grabbed her earbuds, plugging it into her phone she started her playlist. Hoping that some music could silence these loud thoughts, a poor attempt at it. Her mind still ran a mile, " _Then there's those two… They talk about themselves like they weren't people at all, but they look like it. Even act like it. Lane seemed the most torn up about their roles, which I'm still super duper confused on what that is. Kyra seems so cold and calculated, it almost seemed like she hated talking to me. Would she have a different opinion about this choice I was given?"_

Blue eyes still staring upwards intensely, Max felt a heaviness grow on her chest. " _Another worry now is… The possibility of saving Chloe. I know the answer is obvious, in fact I would have just went for it and told them to do it now. Without any doubts, so what's stopping me?"_

Max felt her eyes fighting off the sleep that was trying to take over, her mind was fading in and out as the music started to carry her.

The moment her eyes fluttered shut she opened them again, she was now seeing the orange glow of a sunset. She was back on the hilltop with the lighthouse, overlooking the ocean while sitting on the bench.

"Fancy seeing you back here, Hippie."

Max turned her head to the side to find the object of her thoughts, Chloe was smirking at her knowingly. Like she knew that Max was thinking about her not too long ago. Her posture was relaxed, a leg over the other with an arm resting along the top of the bench they were sitting in.

"Chloe…"

"I keep hearing that you've got yourself wrapped up into some weird shit, how are you holding up?" The blue haired girl asked, she was more concerned for Max's emotional and mental state rather than the choice her best friend was given.

Max kept silent, her eyes moving away from Chloe's.

With a sigh Chloe took a more stern tone, "Whatever you're thinking, Max? Don't do it."

Max blinked a few times, taken by surprise by the finality in Chloe's words. "What—Chloe, I can't just n—"

"Listen to me." She cut her off, Chloe was now sitting up straight. "You have to let this go, let _**me**_ go…" Despite being dead, it never felt like Max really did let her go.

"Please, don't say that." Max's voice trembled with sadness.

"Look at yourself, Max." Chloe smiled sadly, "You're getting older, and I'm still the same. You went back to school, and I'm stuck in your dreams." She went on, seeing Max's eyes mist with incoming tears. "You've been getting hit on by half of the university, and I can't be any of them. I'm gone, Max."

"But I could bring you back!" Max choked out, "Chloe, I don't want to grow older, not without you!"

Chloe stood up from the bench, her boot kicked a pebble off to the side when she let out a frustrated groan. She stopped and turned to look at Max with a pained expression, "You aren't making this easy for me either! Don't even try to pretend that you don't also have doubts about going through with this." She pointed out, she began to pace a bit. "That should be enough reason for you to jump ship, I mean… Do you _**really**_ want to repeat all those fucked up things that happened that week?"

"No, of course I don't want to!" Max yelled back, tears slowly running down her cheeks. "I don't ever want to watch you get hurt, I wouldn't want to go through the cycle again. I don't want to watch it all end… to lose you again! That's why—That's why I'm so fucking scared of doing it, because deep down I'm afraid that I'll fail and that I have to watch you die one more time! And this time I'd lose you for good!" Max had stood up from the bench as well, the whole time she had been ranting she was already standing face to face with Chloe.

"But you still wanna do it, don't you?" Chloe questioned her, her own blue eyes watering but she would not allow herself to let out the tears.

"If I do, I'll have a chance at bringing you back. I might lose you then… but if I just sit here and not do anything, it's just the same." Max rationalized.

Chloe snorted, "Damned if you do, damned if you don't… Heh."

"I wasn't looking for your permission anyways." Max replied while wiping her tears away with her shirt. She almost jumped when she felt two arms wrap around her in a warm embrace, Max blinked a few times in surprise before returning the gesture. Her own arms wrapping around Chloe's waist, she buried her face against the other girl's shoulder

"I sometimes wonder if this is really you." Max admitted out loud, her voice rough from her sore throat.

"Seriously? You're wondering about that _**now**_?" Chloe teased with a chuckle, "Alright, we can play that game. Tell me, what would the _**real**_ Chloe say right now?"

Max breathed out a chuckle, she took a moment to think. In her best Chloe impersonation she answered, "Ready for the mosh-pit, Shaka bra… So hellaaaa."

Chloe pulled away from their hug with a deep frown, "You're not fucking funny, Caulfield."

"Hahaha, okay okay—Can I change my answer?" Max asked between laughs.

"Sure, let's hear what other stupid shit you're gonna say to me." Chloe deadpanned, still frowning at the girl in her arms.

Stifling further laughter, Max composed herself and relaxed further into Chloe's hold. Now more serious, she looked back into Chloe's eyes. She didn't need to use anymore words to guess. Max leaned in and kissed her, "...I love you." She whispered against Chloe's lips, the girl responded back with another slow kiss.

"Nothing's going to change your mind, is it?" Chloe had broken the kiss with a deep sigh.

"You won't know who I am at first…" Max started, leaning her forehead against Chloe's. "You won't remember any of the things we've done together, you won't know how I feel about you or remember how you felt about me. Fuck… This, you being here. You're probably not real. But I'll tell you anyways... When I find you, I won't ever leave your side again."

Chloe looked surprised at the suddenness of Max's words, she smiled brightly back at the girl. "You sure know how to leave an impression… All I can say now, is good luck. Please, don't get yourself killed and get your ass back to me. You hear?"

* * *

 

**Max's room, 4:20 AM**

She had woken up, she could feel her pillow was damp with tears. Max rubbed her eyes and sat up. She glanced down at her phone intensely, picking it up she unlocked it's screen.

**Max: Lane, you there?**

**Lane: I know, where do you want to meet?**


	3. Life is Insane

**October 7th, 2016**

**University: Library, 1:04 PM**

Max has had her nose buried in books, her eyes burning due to also staring into a computer screen for long hours. She had been researching some myths and legends about the two mysterious women, they called themselves The Fates. Thinking over it now the name may have rang a bell, it turned out that The Fates were the very incarnation of destiny. They controlled the metaphorical thread of life of every mortal from birth to death. From what Max could see, these beings were depicted as tapestry weavers. " _Guess they got with the times and started tattooing people for money instead."_ Max wondered if having this tattoo on her had a different purpose other than looking pretty on her skin, the thought of it made her nervous.

"Man, these chicks have been everywhere almost. From Greek to Roman mytho, to Slavic and Norse too…" She scrolled along the wiki page curiously, "How much of this is even accurate? Ugh…" She groaned out, she's seeing a lot of these sources mentioning there were _**three**_ women known as The Fates, but it's just Lane and Kyra who came to her. She felt a headache coming on, not much to go by on the internet. The piles of books sitting on the desk didn't do much for her either.

Every source had a difference in names, in culture and in concept. So many stories and legends twisted up, warped countless times by the world, it was hard to discern just what is fact and what is pure legend. Checking the time Max sighed, it was still early. Not time yet to go meet The Fates. Max had communicated with Lane about a time later in the day, she was trying to buy herself some time to research their existence. She wanted to make sure she wasn't dealing with anything dangerous were she to be walking into a trap. Though it still didn't seem like that's a possibility, " _Can't be too careful though, I can't let my guard down around them. Who knows if they've got any other plans for me…"_ After putting away the books she grabbed, Max left the building, she hadn't gone to classes at all today. She had skipped out on them just to look into The Fates, a waste of time that was. She felt like she had not learned anything at all.

Max didn't want to go home, she figured it would be for the best. Her parents didn't get a chance to see her appearance this morning, but she was certain she looked like utter shit with the lack of sleep and the stress weighing on her. It would only raise questions that Max couldn't answer without them thinking their daughter had finally snapped. She had almost felt like she was when she looked up the pictures from Skin Stigma, all of it were blurs of nothing. The only picture that was a semblance of a definition was the one shot she took of Lane and Kyra together and even that picture was odd. In the image, Lane and Kyra had blurred out silhouettes that were just behind them at their sides, as if they were their shadows but it looked more like it was foggy reflections of themselves. Max had saved the picture for further inspection later, something told her there had to be some kind of meaning behind this picture. It was an added assurance that this is all real, besides the obvious tattoo on her forearm. She would have chalked the whole thing up as a figment of her imagination without the physical evidences.

Max glanced at the time and breathed out heavily, she had to start leaving soon. Lane and Kyra should be waiting for her back at the tattoo shop by now.

* * *

**Back At Subcultures**

Lane had just finished working on another client, she completed a large back mural. Another satisfied customer, she pulled off her latex gloves to finally scratch the itch on her nose she had been feeling all those hours working.

"I'm about to close up shop." Kyra announced, "That girl should be on her way to us." She shut off the neon sign, her now green eyes glancing out the glass entrance door.

"What are the odds of this one actually passing?" Lane asked out of the blue, removing her glasses from her face.

Kyra gave her a tired look in return, "You know my answer will always be the same each time you ask that."

"You can't think the worst of _**everyone**_ , Kyra." Lane defended, "Max might be different, stop wishing her failure."

"I am not wishing anyone's failure. You know how strongly I feel about mortals, they're all selfish and greedy."

Lane bit her lip, arms crossing over her chest. The two of them were standing in the inking station room, a heavy silence weighing over them. She finally spoke up, uncertainty evident in her voice. "Kyra… You have to look past this, I know it was _**my**_ fault but that was a different time—A different lifetime."

"Now's not the time to talk about this." Kyra pinched the bridge of her nose, she felt a headache coming on.

"When are we going to then?" Lane threw her hands up while giving Kyra a disbelieving look, "I know we're stuck together forever and we've literally got all the time in the fucking universe, but come on!"

Kyra was about to open her mouth but stopped when she heard beads rattle, Max had walked into the room through the curtains. She looked rather perplexed, then began to feel awkward. Noticing she had walked in during a personal conversation she cleared her throat, "Oh, um… Sorry, am I here early?" She motioned behind herself, signaling The Fates if she should leave them to whatever it was Max had just interrupted.

"No, it's not a problem." Lane sighed out before calming herself she turned to smile at Max, "I'm glad you could make it, I knew you wouldn't wait out another day to think this over." She teased her, reaching out to Max to come into the middle of the room. She could see how nervous the girl looked, Lane couldn't blame her.

"How is this going to work exactly? I can't rewind time anymore like I use to…" Max explained with some confusion.

"Well, let's just take a look at you for a moment." Kyra said while inspecting Max, she walked around her as she did so. Kyra cupped her chin and hummed in thought while sizing up the Photographer, she had to really take in the appearance. Max wore a purple t-shirt, with black skinnies and some hi-tops as shoes. The blonde leaned in a bit, taking a closer look at Max's blue eyes. The slowly fading black circles under them, the light freckles on her skin. Even her shoulder length, messy brown hair that seem to always to be getting in Max's face a lot. Though it was not only her physical appearance that Kyra was thinking over, it was the energy off of Max. After a few more long seconds, Kyra frowned slightly at her. Making Max look back at her with mild concern.

"What's wrong?" Was the hesitant question Max voiced out, worried eyes moving from Kyra to Lane back and forth.

Kyra had ignored Max's inquiry, she was mumbling to herself, "I knew this was going to be difficult from the start…"

"Nothing's wrong, Max." Lane answered assuredly, before poking Kyra with a nudge, "Right? Say something, you're freaking her out."

Kyra arched her eyebrow at Lane, "You know where this is going, I've nothing to tell her. Just go over it with her and we'll do it."

Lane gave her a deadpanned look before going back to Max, "Alright, girly. Looks like the game is still on for you. Before we send you back, there's just some things you need to know. So pay attention."

Max nodded earnestly, she then eyed at what Lane was offering to her. In Lane's hand was money, a lot of it. It turned out to be the money she had paid for her tattoo, a bit more than that. Max tried to question it but Lane insisted that she kept it, that Max was going to need it. The confusion was growing in the back of her mind as she pocketed the money in her side bag, where she kept her Polaroid camera. It wasn't the same bag from her high school years, it was a grey letter-man bag with the leather belts and pins stuck around it. It still served it's purpose and it was a nice gift from her father.

"Now, as you already know, this is not just a chance, but a test. You'll be sent back by our combined powers, so you're going back without any abilities from that time. Every choice you make, make them wisely. Remember, no storm is coming. Only thing you need to worry about is saving Chloe and overcome whatever obstacles life throws at you. Oh, and of course we'll be watching you all the while. Does that sound simple enough?" Lane explained expertly to Max, making sure the girl understood her. When Max nodded her head back in response Lane clapped her hands, "Okay! It's about to go down, Kyra. We're ready."

The Fates took their positions, Lane stood in front of Max with a hand on the front right of her shoulder. Her eyes reverting back to silver she winked at Max playfully, making her feel less tense. Kyra stood behind her with a hand holding the back of her left shoulder, crimson eyes staring over back at Lane. They shared a knowing stare, confirming to one another how they were going to do this.

"One more thing, Max." Kyra said, a faint crackling sound began to fill the room.

"Y-Yeah?" She stuttered back at Kyra, feeling this odd vibration surrounding her.

"Good luck." Both Kyra and Lane said in unison.

A bright flash engulfed the entire room, Max gasped in a fright when she had been blinded. She had no idea what just happened, that moment felt like it was paused. There was just a nothingness occupying all of her senses, as if she had stopped existing in that moment.

* * *

The crackling energy and aura that wrapped around her evaporated into thin air, expecting to be feeling the ground underneath her feet she came to realize she was airborne, she fell down like a heavy bowling ball.

Max landed on top of the hood of an old rusted car, upon impact her form bounced off it and fell hard against the ground. Cursing out in a hiss of pain she rolled to her side, she was for sure going to feel that for some time. Planting a hand against the dirt ground she pushed herself up back on her feet, "Their delivery could have been...better." Max groaned out, rolling her left shoulder to ease the soreness there.

Taking in her surroundings, Max knew she wasn't where she was supposed to be. This wasn't the girl's restroom at Blackwell, "They sent me back to the wrong place, fuck…" She held her head as she looked around, fingers digging into her hair as she was on the brink of pulling some out. She was beyond stressed out, she then stopped her nervous pacing when she realized where exactly she was.

"This place… It's—Oh man, American Rust?" She said in a bit of awe, letting go of her head she took in the sight. Memories of her and Chloe messing around here invaded her thoughts, who would have thought she would enjoy being in a junkyard?

" _No way… No fucking way."_ Cutting her trip to memory lane short, Max froze for a moment, she brought her arm out and noticed the large tattoo was there still. She glanced down at herself, pulling at her shirt in bewilderment. " _I'm wearing the same clothes?"_ Max thought rapidly, she rushed over to the rusted car she had landed on, looking into a cracked side mirror. "No, no, no, _**no**_!"

She wasn't back as her eighteen year old self, she was still twenty one. "They fucked that up too?! What the fuck, just— _ **Fuck**_!" She was now passed stressed out, she was on freak out overdrive now.

Max stopped her tantrum when she heard the faint sound of music close by, she could only discern it as a loud, upbeat song playing. Walking around the large piles of cars and junk, she peeked out the corner and spotted a small structure that was somewhat falling apart. It was the clubhouse. The music was coming from there, she could clearly hear it now. Someone had to be occupying the space, no one else hung out in there besides Chloe. The thought of running into a still alive Chloe brought a bit of quickened, excited heartbeats but at the same time it trembled with some fear. Max thought to herself in dread, " _I can't let Chloe see me like this."_ She leaned away from the corner and pressed her back against the large stack of rust, " _Would she even recognize me?"_

Willing herself, she sneaked around the clubhouse, light on her feet Max quickly walked. She just wanted to confirm that it was Chloe, she needed to make sure no one was messing around in there wrecking her friend's stuff. Now crouching, Max made it to the back of the small structure, she was just below an opening where a window frame should be. She just needed to take a quick look, she didn't want to get caught by whoever was trespassing in there. If it's Frank she'd be in deep trouble if he spots her, but if it turns out to be Chloe and she see's Max it would be a bad situation all together still, given her current state. Moving up slightly, Max brought her eyes over just enough to see inside. As soon as she did she instantly ducked down, a hand over her mouth to muffle any surprised noises. She was sitting down on the ground with her back against the concrete wall. Blue eyes wide like a deer caught in headlights at what she had just witnessed.

It was for sure Chloe in there, but she was not alone. Another girl with long blonde hair was with her, and they were doing more than just jamming out to some music. The two girls were sitting on the makeshift bench set up along the graffiti wall, lip locked, giggling and more than likely high. From what Max briefly saw, it was hard to tell if they were high off weed or off of each other. The one thing she knew for a fact, is that girl currently making out real hardcore with Chloe, was non other than Rachel Amber.

"Explain to me how I ended up skipping school for you today?" Rachel asked the question, her tone amused and her breath heavy as she eased up from their kiss.

"Because I was bored." Chloe replied with a smirk, she leaned in to capture Rachel's lips again but was denied as the blonde stood up to grab a lit joint sitting in an ashtray on the small makeshift table near them.

"I can't make this into a habit, Chloe." She took a drag and passed it over to Chloe, letting out a cloud of smoke from her lungs she then added, "You know I love partying as much as the next girl, but I still take my studies seriously."

"One day of freedom won't kill you." The punk drawled out while inhaling.

"Says the rebel girl who doesn't go to school anymore due to her running track record there." Rachel stated with a pointed look directed at her friend, who was smiling back at her sheepishly.

"I never liked being in that shit hole anyways."

"I just wish you were still there with me, it's not the same without you at school. Felt like I could have done something to save you." She sighed out, feeling disappointed.

Chloe smiled up at her angel, "Rachel, I don't need saving when I've already been saved."

"...You aren't cute." Rachel answered back, struggling with holding back a smile. "Don't think sweet talking your way out of trouble will work every time." She lectured before sitting herself down into a passenger seat they had ripped out of an old car from the yard.

"It's hella working on you good right now, that's all I care about."

Max could practically hear the taunting smirk off of Chloe's voice, having her fill of eavesdropping she crawled away from the clubhouse until she reached the train tracks. Standing up on her feet she walked hastily along them, her steps quickened as she got farther and farther away from the junkyard. " _What the actual fuck?! What is going on? That was Rachel, not missing and dead— **Alive**_ _! With Chloe also alive! Kissing, ugh… Damn, Just how far did they send me back?!"_

Her body was on autopilot now, she had broken into a desperate sprint next to the never ending rail tracks. She stumbled a few times, but she didn't slow down. "K-Kyra…! Lane! Where are you?" Max called out desperately through heavy pants, her lungs were burning from both the overexertion and from yelling. She skidded to a halt when she found two figures lying across the train tracks leisurely, it was The Fates there. Seeing the two of them there like that almost reminded Max of how her and Chloe laid there once, putting the thought aside Max looked at them with a bit of rage.

"You called, what's wrong?" Kyra asked with red eyes glancing up at the out of breath girl.

"Are you serious?" Max looked down at them incredulously, "I have to spell it out for you? You guys sent me way _**way**_ back, Rachel is alive here and if you haven't also noticed—I'm not in my soon to be eighteen year old body! What the hell kind of Fates mess up so horribly?!"

Lane stood up and dusted off her pants, "Not sure how to put this, but this was intentional. At least, bringing you to this timeline was anyways." She gave Max a guilty look, knowing how disgruntled and confused the girl must be now.

"Intentional? You said I would be sent back to save Chloe from getting shot." Max looked between the two with annoyed blue eyes.

"We never said we'd send you back that same exact week." Kyra maintained her position on the rail tracks, with legs crossed she explained even further. "We promised to give you another chance at saving your rambunctious friend, we kept that promise. It's up to you now to experience this timeline and prevent Chloe from spiraling further down into the path of her death."

"Max, think about it: A lot of the things that occurred to Chloe started when that girl went missing. Rachel disappeared April 22 of _**this**_ year in 2013. We sent you back to March, before all of that happened." Lane added slowly, trying to be sure Max understood the intention behind bringing her here.

Max's head was reeling, she looked at Lane with furrowed eyebrows as her mind was processing everything they were saying to her. "This is March? So... " She started reluctantly, "Should I assume that my parents are having a major freak out at the fact that I vanished from Seattle?"

Kyra stood up, she stretched her arms over her head. "You're still in Seattle, around this time you should be seventeen still. You haven't been accepted into Blackwell yet." She said casually while rolling her shoulders to pop, "That's why you only came back as your present self, there was no way around it. Since during this time you haven't arrived to Arcadia Bay yet."

"I've jumped through time across States before, I don't understand why I couldn't come back in my younger body." Max debated to Kyra accusingly, she couldn't help feeling that these Fates didn't care much at all about her situation.

"You've broken apart reality during those times, a lot of time traveling rules didn't apply to you then. It sure does apply _**now**_ though, since we're doing this carefully." Kyra nailed her rebuttal against Max, red eyes narrowing slightly at the girl.

"You mean we're doing this _**your**_ way." Max snapped back, arms crossing with defiance.

Kyra glared intensely back at her, "Trust me, if this was ever going to be my way it would be much different." She clicked her tongue at Max and turned away from her, "I shouldn't need to argue with you, I'll leave you to Lane. I don't have the patience now to be holding your damn hand." With that said she disappeared in a mist of energy, leaving Max and Lane alone at the tracks.

Lane sighed out, "Great, now she's pissed." She mumbled to herself, now concerned that she would have to deal with her sour attitude later when she was done talking with Max.

Max winced at herself, "What have I gotten myself into?"

"Max, I know it's all pretty insane now. You have a lot of questions and doubts about the way we do things here... " Lane tried to see her side of it as she spoke her mind to Max, "But you have to also understand that neither me and Kyra have full control of what's been set in motion for you, it's all by design... " She shook her head, hating hearing herself say this. "Just focus on Chloe, remember what I said about Rachel and try not to think about… the other Max in Seattle, she has no idea of what's going on. Things won't get messed up over there, since you're both so far apart from each other. You won't worry about touching fingers and erasing yourselves."

"That's _**so**_ comforting." Max remarked dryly, she ran a hand through her hair while lips thinned. "How the hell am I supposed approach Chloe like this?" She finally asked, not knowing where to even start.

"Well, for right now… I think the main thing you should focus on today is finding a place to rest. I'll help you out, don't think we were going to just leave you to your own devices. We said we'd guide you."

"So far you're the only one that hasn't bailed on me." Max said, referring to Kyra's lack of presence currently.

For now the two of them had to work without her, taking Max away they got into what she's assuming was Lane's car. She told Max there was a small apartment her and Kyra would use a few times in town, Max joked to her about the fact that they actually drive. She figured The Fates just 'poofed' wherever they pleased, since they were powerful beings. Lane's response to the tease surprised Max.

"Funny you say that, me and Kyra weren't always Fates y'know." Lane gave Max an amused side glance, still tentative on the road ahead of them. "Don't mention that to her, by the way. She'll kill me."

Max gaped at her, a bunch of questions swirling around her head now. Kyra and Lane use to be normal people? She had been so deep in thought that she hadn't noticed where they were now, the drive was so short. Stepping out of the car with Lane, she recognized the street. She was just a few buildings down from the Two Whales diner, Max had to resist the urge of walking down the street to eat some food. She dearly missed Joyce's cooking and her cravings were already kicking in.

Lane ushered Max into the building, stepping up the flight of stairs and walking down a hall they stopped in front of a door. Lane smirks at Max and dropped a pair of keys, Max almost fumbled with them and barely caught them. "Go on, she's all yours."

Max unlocked the door and the two of them stepped inside, Lane had turned the lights on to reveal that they had just entered a modest, one bedroom apartment. It wasn't fancy but it sure was roomy, and comfortable enough for two people. There was a spacious living room area, already set up with a TV and furniture. Even the kitchen was equipped with all of it's basic utilities.

"This place is nice, but um… just how long do you think I'm going to be stuck in this timeline?" Max asked, feeling that all this was a bit excessive, although it was still appreciated. Lane had even left her the keys to the car.

"We're not sure, that depends on your success. We're certain things will be sorted out for good or bad before the semester ends. I got a lot of faith in you that you'll get things done before Rachel's disappearance." Lane expressed her confidence in Max openly, watching Max explore the apartment with a smile. "Besides, you're not a Blackwell student yet here. Figured you'd need a place to crash and figure out your plan of action. Sorry it's not as cute as your dormitory."

"Oh no, this place is awesome!" Max yelled from the bedroom, checking out the bathroom there. "It's just... a lot that you're just handing out to me, even if it's just a short while." She explained with a bit of bashfulness, she popped out into the living room area where she found Lane now sitting there comfortably.

"Glad you like it, hey-Sit down, let's talk 'bidness' as your friend would say." Lane joked, trying to lighten the mood for Max as they got into their discussion.

"I can't believe I'm back here, I'm still processing this whole thing in my head." Max said honestly, leaning back against the couch with a far away look in her eyes. "I feel like I'm a teenager again, but I know it's just the nostalgia catching up with me again."

Lane took a moment before asking, "How did you feel when you saw Chloe?"

"Relieved." Max said at first, she then added with a bit uncertainty. "Scared… A bit of hurt when she was with Rachel." She admitted with a bit of embarrassment, she knew she didn't have the right to feel jealous. She hasn't even reunited with Chloe yet in this timeline, how silly was she to even play the jealous card?

"I know this is going to be tough, but for right now you have to put your feelings aside." Lane advised with a sad smile, "Your first plan of action will have to focus on Rachel, during this time she's currently involved with Frank Bowers. I'm sure you remember him." She received a stern nod from Max, she continued on. "Of course, as we all know, Chloe has no clue. Though that's just the tip of the iceberg… Despite that fact, we know Rachel is gonna end up getting with that bastard, Mark Jefferson. That's where we need to intervene."

It was only logical to start there, Max figured she would need to approach Rachel Amber first. In a way it's a much easier step than facing Chloe. Rachel wouldn't know who Max was by looking at her, she wouldn't even need to use her real name.

"Alright, so I gotta get to her. Where do you think she'll be going next after she's done with Chloe?"

Lane mentioned that Rachel might be meeting up with Frank later today, she was certain that Chloe and her would get into an argument over something stupid. Rachel would be heading out to this bar in town to meet with Frank, Max would need to get to her first before he shows up. At this Max nodded, it seemed simple enough. Though her biggest concern was the following, " _What the hell do I tell her?"_

"Become a friend, get close to Rachel, enough for her to open up to you and tell you all of her dirty little secrets. Take it from there and see what happens, you've got some time so don't seem desperate and raise suspicion. Kyra and I will be watching you the whole time." Lane stood up, making it known that it was time for her to leave. Kyra was most likely listening in, but she was sure she'd like for Lane to come back and discuss.

"Remember, Max. You're without rewind powers, don't do anything reckless." Lane warned before disappearing in the blink of an eye, leaving Max alone to her thoughts.

Throwing herself back she laid down fully on the couch, staring up at the ceiling with thoughtful blue eyes. She had been trying to block out the image of Chloe and Rachel at the clubhouse, but every time she thought back to Chloe it would come back like a slap across the face. " _I knew her and Rachel were close but…"_ Thinking back to when she was in Chloe's room, she remembered teasing the blue haired-punk about crushing all over Rachel. How slow could she have been? Of course Chloe and Rachel had a thing—Have a thing. She let out a frustrated groan as she covered her face with her hands, " _Now I have to do some covert, espionage-undercover bullshit and get myself close to Rachel Amber. Closer than Chloe ever has in knowing the other side of her. How fucked is that?"_

Thinking back to the classic James Bond movies she use to watch with her dad, Max remembered how objective and direct Agent 007 was when it came to the mission at hand. Nothing ever got in his way, no matter how bad it was. Sometimes putting aside emotions to get the job done was effective. " _Come on, Agent Caulfield. You can do this."_

With a bit of self confidence boost, Max stood up and stepped out of the apartment. It was time to go out and catch her target. She knew the bar place, well, knew of it. A lot of the fishermen and bikers passing through stop there to fill up on beer. She was sure a lot of the seniors from Blackwell would sneak in and partake in underage drinking, should be no surprise that Rachel would hang out there with Frank. Driving around town she makes it to the bar, she parks the car across the street from it. Taking a breath she exited the car and walked towards the bar, eyeing the bikes parked on the sidewalk near it. She use to be so nervous about entering bars but it was so trivial now that she's of age, although bars are still not her scenes she eventually learned that some alcohol is actually tasty. Beer is still a bit of an acquired taste she had yet understood. The moment she stood inside her nose picked up the strong scent of tobacco, it was half full since it was now early evening around six pm. She scanned around the bar, it was typical and generic. Your basic rock music playing in the background, the pool table was already occupied. A few others were rounded up near the dark target, placing some bets in. The place was decorated with various different posters and hunting trophies, which Max frowned upon.

Ignoring the odd glances she was receiving from the bar goers, she made her way towards the bar area and took a seat. She doesn't see Rachel anywhere, and there were no signs of Frank either. " _Guess I got here unfashionably early."_

The bartender came over to her, "What're ya havin'?"

Max gave him an awkward smile, "Uhh… Rum and coke, please?"

He asked for an ID, Max pulled it out of her wallet and hesitated. This license was issued to her in Seattle, but that wasn't her concern. The fact that her date of birth shows as 1993 on it, will cause some problems. She may look twenty one but last time she checked it was 2013 of this year, she readied herself for whatever questioning look the bartender would give her but was surprised when he handed the card back and began to prepare her drink.

Max looked down at her card and noticed that a few digits on her date of birth were incorrect-Or better yet, it was changed. She wondered if the Fates had anything to do with that, " _Way to look out for me, I'll have to thank them for that. Avoided an awkward situation just now."_

With a drink now in hand she waited, taking a few sips here and there. The other bar goers have finally taken their odd looks off of Max, now that she was blending in as just another person at the bar. As she was sipping from her glass, she felt some of it's contents go up her nose when she had almost choked on it.

Rachel Amber just walked in.

Her long blonde hair flowed gracefully with each step, a blue feather hanged along as an earring. She moved with purpose, with hazel eyes looking around rapidly. She looked somewhat annoyed. Perhaps Lane was right and she had gotten into an argument with Chloe. Now she's here at the bar to meet up with Frank. It was odd seeing Rachel in the flesh, what freaked Max out a bit was the fact that even in a bad mood, Rachel Amber looked gorgeous.

Max immediately recognized her attire, it was the same clothing Max herself had worn the night she stayed over with Chloe. Rachel was wearing a red flannel shirt, it's sleeve torn up at seams over a shoulder. The tight fitted white tank was under it, which was half tucked into her black jeans that hugged her hips perfectly with a studded belt strapped on. Her black boots walked along the bar, not seeing the person she was looking for she decided to sit at the bar area. Just three seats away from where nervous blue eyes were gazing at her.

Max looked away before she would get caught staring, she glanced down at her half full glass. " _Oh man, she's right there, Max. Now's a good chance as any to talk to her."_ She gulped down the rest of her drink in one quick motion, holding back a wince from the stinging in her throat. She should have watched that bartender make her drink, it was way strong for her. Now with some liquid courage running through her veins, she hyped herself up once more internally before turning to the side to look at Rachel again.

"Hey there."

Max almost jerked up when Rachel had moved over to sit right next to her, a warm smile was on her face. "Oh, sorry, did I startle you?" She asked with a light chuckle, seeing the way the other girl had reacted to her greeting.

"N-No, just surprised me is all." Max resisted the urge to slap a palm into her face at her stuttering.

"I just couldn't help but notice your awesome tattoo." Rachel confessed as she gestured to the girl's forearm that laid on top of the bar. Max brought her arm over for Rachel to take a closer look, making her eyes practically shine, "This is amazing work! I love the deer skull, the colors are so pretty."

"Thanks, I got it back in Seattle." Max mentioned, making casual conversation.

Hearing her say Seattle caught Rachel's attention, "I _**knew**_ you weren't from here, never seen your face anywhere in town. You came all the way from Seattle to this place?" She asked in a bit of awe mixed with confusion, she was wondering why on earth would anyone come to Arcadia Bay on purpose.

Max was unsure how to react at Rachel's obvious interest in knowing more about her, she had forgotten that Rachel had also wanted to leave Arcadia Bay. She can't give away too much, just to be careful. She had no idea if Chloe talked about Max from their shared childhood.

"I'm a photographer, just came down here for a job. Nothing big." Max said with a shrug, while mentally she maintained herself cool.

"You're a professional? Whoa, you have no idea how cool you are to me right now." Rachel admitted with excitement, "I'm Rachel Amber, if you were wondering." She introduced herself, shaking hands with her new bar friend.

" _Rachel's pretty charming, no wonder everyone gets along with her so well."_ Max thought, she paused for a moment, noticing that Rachel was still waiting for her to introduce herself back.

"Oh, um… nice to meet you, my name's Jack." Max blurted out before she could think, "It's short for Jacqueline, but I hate the name so everyone calls me Jack." She added to save Rachel the trouble of asking about such an odd name for a girl.

Rachel smirked slightly, "No last name? Okay… Cool name, for a cool girl though." She winked at her, adding to the tease.

Max felt her eyebrows raise upwards, " _Charming_ _ **and**_ _flirtatious, another reason why some crush on her so hard."_

Before Max could open her mouth to recover from the verbal tease, Rachel's phone went off. Max assumed it might have been a text, from who she could only guess.

"Great, my supposed 'date' is skipping out on me." Rachel sighed as she looked down at her phone's screen. "Men, am I right?" She gave 'Jack' half a smile, masking her disappointment that the person she was waiting for isn't showing up.

" _Does not surprise me, coming from Frank."_ Max frowned a bit, showing her concern for Rachel, "That sucks, I'm sorry."

The blonde raised a hand up dismissively, "It's alright, I already got some good company with me."

"That just earned you a drink." Max smiled back, she waved over the bartender after asking the other girl what she liked.

"I don't want to be majorly rude, but how old are you? You look so young to me." Rachel commented with curiosity, leaning her back against the bar leisurely with elbows resting on top of it.

"I just turned twenty one." Max answered honestly, on the back of her mind she had been scolding herself. " _Really, Maxine? You're getting a minor drinks? If mom could see me now…"_

"Figured that was it, thanks for the drink." Rachel showed her gratitude in her smile, taking a sip from the beer that was slid over to her on the bar.

The both of them spent some time talking, Rachel had shared with 'Jack' her passion for both photography and modeling. She even mentioned Blackwell Academy, things that Max had already known about but still acted out surprised reactions. Though her being impressed at Rachel's intelligence was real, she knew the student had a high score of 4.0 in record at school, but to hear it and to see it in her way of speaking… Max had not thought they could hold a conversation so easily with one another like they were right now.

This girl, she was too perfect to be real. " _But she's not perfect… she has problems like any troubled young adult in this world. At least, she's about to get into some serious shit soon. Someone like her doesn't deserve to be killed for inexperienced mistakes… Damn it all. I have to do something to save her."_ Max realized that this wasn't just about Chloe. Yes, she knew that in order to save her best friend she needed to help Rachel out too. Though now, it didn't feel that way anymore.

Rachel Amber matters also, and Max wants to save her just as much.

Max had two drinks down, while Rachel had a few more than her. She didn't mind, not like she was broke. Thanks to Lane's generous donation. For a nineteen year old, Rachel was pretty tolerant to alcohol. Though she was sure Rachel would take more than that, given her history with some hardcore drugs.

"So… Rachel, you're a real smart girl. That's extremely clear." Max started, her posture more relaxed.

Rachel tilted her head to the side, an elegant eyebrow arching up. "I can already guess where you're going with this, but go right ahead, Jack."

"I'm sure you get this a lot…" Max smiled at her sheepishly as she went on, "Just how is it that someone like you is hanging around places like these? Now _**I**_ can already guess that your date isn't exactly from your school, is he?"

"Ha… Right on the nose there, Jackson." Rachel jokes but shook her head, "Not many pay that much attention like you just did."

"So you come here often and no one says a single word about it?" Max asked in shock, taking a quick sip from her drink, eyes glancing sideways at the girl.

"They more like pretend I'm not here. Y'know? Out of sight, out of mind. No one really cares, what teenager isn't always trying to indulge in underage drinking?" Rachel stated with a carefree shrug, her point very well made.

"Sure, but… what about your parents? Do they know you like hanging out at bars late night with… 'Mature' dating candidates?" Max pressed more, concerned eyes still peering over to the blonde model next to her.

Rachel snorted, a bitter smile gracing her lips as she looked down at the beer bottle in her grasp. "My parents could care less about what I do on my free time. Hell, I could go missing one day and they'd probably give up searching for me after a few months." She took another swig from the beer, not seeing how Jack's eyes widened at her statement.

" _Holy fuck, Rachel. That's… an insanely fucked up—but pretty accurate description, 'cause that's exactly what happened based on what Chloe's told me."_ Max couldn't figure out how that's even possible, but like every problem child in the world, there were always shitty parents who were at fault and responsible for their kid's state of mind.

Max wanted to apologize, to tell Rachel that despite how things may seem so fucked up now, it can get better. "Rachel… I—" Her words were cut off when a slender finger pressed against her lips, silencing her effectively.

Rachel giggled, her cheeks flushed. She was for sure tipsy now, "You're probably going to think this is weird, but I think you and my friend should totally meet."

"Y-Your friend?" Max stuttered out, gingerly removing Rachel's finger away from her mouth.

"Well, she's more like my best friend." She said with a wide grin, leaning a bit closer towards Jack as if she was about to share a secret. "You and her would so hit it off, even if you are just a bit older than her, but trust me… She'd dig that, she _**swears**_ she's an adult in her mid twenties." Rachel laughs a bit, making Max also laugh along with her.

Max looks at the time on her phone, it was way past ten pm. Remembering that Blackwell had a curfew, she reaches over and grabs Rachel's beer away from her. "I think it's time for you to go back to your dorm, you took the bus over here, yeah?"

"Haha, yeah, they don't really run late at night. I guess I'll have to walk." Rachel said, as if it wasn't a big deal.

"No way, I'll take you back. It's not a problem, really." Max insisted as she paid off her tab on the bar.

"That's too much, you'd be driving all the way up there…" The young student said with a bit of guilt, though the guilt faded when an idea came to mind. "I know! You can drop me off at my friend's place, so much closer from here than school." She grabbed Jack by the arm with both hands, a drunk smile looping upwards.

Max already knew what that meant, " _Fuck, she wants me to drop her off at Chloe's… That is too risky, but I can't let Rachel go off on her own in this state. Damn it, Max, take responsibility. You were the one who got her the drinks, just do what she's asking. If I stay in the car, it should be fine."_ She thought this over as Rachel pulled her by the arm towards the exit of the bar.

The drive was short, much to Max's rising anxiety as she drove down the familiar neighborhood. As they got close to their destination, Max asked Rachel for a small favor. "Hey, I know you said you wanted me to meet your… friend, but I think you should keep our meeting a secret for now."

Rachel snorted a bit in amusement, furrowing her eyebrows at Jack. "You sound so paranoid, do I wanna ask why?"

"I-I just don't want to get to know _**too**_ many people here, that's all." Max made up the lame excuse, internally cringing at herself.

"Hmm, well, I guess that makes sense. You did say before you were only here for a short time until you're done with work." Rachel concluded to herself out loud, not aware that she had been speaking her mind.

Pulling up near the driveway, Max keeps her eyes wide to ensure no blue haired-punk was in sight to catch her. "Okay, this is your stop. Try to get some sleep, drink plenty of water and—"

Rachel leaned over her seat to plant a soft kiss on Max's cheek, "Thanks for the hangout and drinks. You got my number, so don't forget to text! You promised we'd hang again."

Max looked like a fish out of water, startled blue eyes watched the girl get out of the car and wave goodbye to her. " _This is_ _ **so**_ _weird… Beyond belief."_ She made herself think Rachel was just overly friendly when she was drunk. Seeing the girl enter the Price residence she kicked her car into drive and sped out of the street. She had missed the front door opening again with a beanie clad head poking out of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is gonna be a slow going story, I know the lack of Pricefield is disturbing but it'll get there eventually. Please be patient and drop a review! Thanks <3


	4. Life is Complicated

_Jimmy Eat World - Polaris_

* * *

Max had woken up in the morning, she found herself in the living room couch with the TV turned on low volume. She fell asleep to a music channel, various different songs were playing. Still half asleep Max stays there on the couch, contemplating about everything and anything. The music filled the silent emptiness that surrounded the room, providing her mental monologue cushion. " _I feel like death, and I wasn't even the one that got drunk last night."_ Max huffed out a laugh as she sat up slowly on the couch, " _No dreams last night, wonder if me being here has anything to do with that. Still, it would have been great to have another dream with Chloe in it... So lame."_

Max let's out a longing breath, she moved on to a different topic in mind, "Today marks the second day of madness, just what will be my game plan?"

"Well, we figured you'd want some clothes to change into first."

Max snapped her head to the side at the sound of another's voice, her heart jumping with fright.

Kyra had been leaning against a wall near the window, she may have been standing there for some time. She tossed a duffel bag over by Max's feet on the floor, "We brought some back from your room in the 'future', hope you don't mind."

Max eyed the bag and then looked back to Kyra with confusion, she wondered why the red eyed Fate was being nice to her. Well, nice for Kyra's usual cold attitude. She rummaged through the bag, there were plenty of clothes in it, even other necessities that Max didn't have at the time. " _She just saved me the pain of going out to a convenience store, that was pretty thoughtful…"_

Max gave Kyra a half smile, "Thanks, you didn't really have to go through the trouble. I'm sure using your powers for simple things like that isn't something you do."

"It was Lane's idea, I just decided to do it." She pointed out, not wanting to give Max the wrong idea. She was still annoyed with her, but Kyra didn't want to stress her out more than she already has been given where the mortal was currently.

"Think of it as my way of apologizing, it really was harsh putting you through all of this without any warning." Kyra said with sincerity, "It was better just ripping off the band-aid in one go, rather than peeling it slowly. If that makes any sense."

At this Max arched an eyebrow at her, "It sort of does, I get it… I think" She had not expected that at all. Maybe she could get along with Kyra like she does with Lane.

"Apology accepted." She finally said after a moment of pause, she couldn't help smiling wider when Kyra looked less tense around the shoulders.

Clearing her throat, the Fate pushed herself off the wall and sat on a seat across from Max. "You've been doing well so far, I saw you get close to Rachel."

There was a flashback behind Max's eyes, she remembered how friendly her new friend was. Coughing in her fist, Max answered back to Kyra. "Yeah, it was an interesting experience to say the least."

Kyra gave her input, she advised Max that she needed to text the girl and meet with her again as soon as possible. She warned Max that today Mark Jefferson would begin advancing on Rachel, today would be a perfect opportunity to put a dent into the psychopath's urges.

"I remember reading a letter from Rachel before, it was a pretty guilty one talking about hooking up with someone outside of Blackwell. You think that might happen today?" Max asked Kyra with great worry, standing up from the couch as if she was ready to run out.

"It might as well, they've been dancing around the prospect of it for weeks now. Given the pure admiration for his work, Rachel can't resist it for long. She is just as big of a fan as you were, though I'm sure you didn't have that groupie complex."

Max cringed, she hated how much she admired Jefferson in the past. His work was genius, it still is and she could not deny it. She wasn't certain how she would react if she saw his twisted face again, the idea of it churned her stomach. Though what made her feel even more sick was him laying a hand on Rachel, when the poor girl was clueless to his true intentions. How shocked must Rachel have been, when she came to realize the person that supposedly changed her life—Someone she fell for, was going to be responsible for taking it all away? Max couldn't imagine the regret and anguish she was going through when it happened. " _It won't happen. I_ _ **won't**_ _let it happen."_

Max pulled out her phone and sent a quick text, nodding to herself she grabs the duffel bag and disappears into the bathroom. Kyra stayed there for a few moments, patiently waiting for Max to be done. When she came back she had changed into a new, clean outfit.

Smoothing out the wrinkles of her black button up shirt, she rolls up its sleeves to expose her tattoo and wristbands, "I haven't gotten a reply yet, but I'm crashing into Blackwell regardless."

Kyra smiled faintly at Max's resolve, "Just remember—"

"Don't be reckless, I know. Lane covered that a lot yesterday." She adjusted her pale blue jeans as she stated with determination. "I just can't afford messing all of this up, it's two lives on the line now."

"The gravity of the situation is certainly heavy, your awareness is much needed." Kyra commented standing up, she took the keys off the coffee table and gestured towards the door. "I'll be driving this time."

Max was taken aback, "Whoa—Wait, you're coming with?"

"I won't get in your way, don't worry. Let's go." Kyra had already left the apartment, with a very baffled Max jogging after her.

* * *

**March 5th, 2013**

**Oregon, Arcadia Bay**

**Blackwell Academy, 12:00 PM**

Max was staring out the window, she's seen a few familiar faces walk around. Students that have been attending Blackwell at earlier grades. It was such an odd sensation, feeling so old when she hadn't even hit her thirties yet. " _Yeah, going back through time into the past does that."_

"This is so freaky, you have no idea." Max expressed to Kyra, the two of them have been parked across the street from the school.

"Don't dwell on it, focus on the task at hand. Has Rachel replied back yet?" Kyra asked, her own eyes watching students roam about the school grounds.

Max sighed, her answer was full of worry. "No, I haven't gotten anything at all. You think we might be too late?"

"We won't know unless you get out of the car." Kyra deadpanned, her face stoic as she glanced at Max.

"You seriously think they're going to allow some stranger walk around the school like it's nothing?"

"No offense, but no matter what you think, you really don't look like your age." Kyra pointed out, making it known that Max can easily blend in as a student.

Max's jaw dropped halfway before closing back up, a frown now on her face. "I'll have you know, that's an actual struggle." Kyra rolled her eyes as the young adult stepped out of the car.

It was odd how natural it felt walking up the steps to the school, she did her best to avoid any eye contact with the students that were outside. Max probably looked like a nervous new exchange student, she was sure that would help in preventing anyone from trying to chat her up. She entered the building, when she did, a lot of her memories here came rushing to her head. She had no idea if she truly liked being here or not anymore. After all that's happened, it was tough for her to decide. She briskly walked along the hallway, her eyes glancing around attentively. She was sure if she ran into the paranoid security guard he would suspect her right away, she wouldn't put it past David Madsen for his photographic memory of every student that comes in and out of here.

Before she knew it, she was already in front of Jefferson's classroom door. Max felt her anxiety levels rising up, she forced herself to calm down and peeked into the glass window. She could see Mark Jefferson sitting at his desk there, grading some papers while he was chatting with Rachel, who was casually leaning against the wood frame. From anyone else's perspective it would seem like a student-teacher conversation was going on, but Max knew all too well that wasn't the case at all.

" _Okay, Max, you're here. What the hell are you going to do now?"_ There's no way she could just walk in there and grab Rachel, could she?

Max opened the door by impulse, she allowed herself to go with it as she entered with a confident smirk. "There you are! Been looking all over for you."

Rachel's expression was amusing to say the least, the girl was in utter shock but it was a pleasant shock to her. Her hazel eyes were wide and a smile grew large on her lips, "Jack? What the—"

"Can I help you?" Jefferson cut in, eyebrows arching up over the bold frames of his glasses.

Max answered back in a flat tone, without making any glances at him. "You can't, but she can. Come on, Rach, we're gonna be late." She strode over to the still shell-shocked girl, grabbing her by the hand gently, she walked out of the classroom. Leaving a dumbfounded Jefferson behind.

Much to Max's relief, Rachel willingly played along and allowed herself to be taken away. Though all the while they were walking out of the school, Rachel was very teasing. "When you promised we'd hang out again soon, I didn't think you'd be sneaking into my school just to see me." She chuckled when Max tripped in her steps at her remark.

"L-Look, we need to talk. It's kind of important and it can't wait…" Max tried to explain evenly, hoping to not freak out the girl. She let go of her hand when they were outside, now near the water fountain. Max took a glance around, making sure no one could hear their conversation.

Rachel gave her a knowing look, which then turned into a sympathetic smile. "Aww, Jack… Please tell me you aren't here to ask me on a date."

Max felt her face flare up, "What?! No!" She denied, a bit louder than intended, " _ **So**_ not what's going on here." She ran a hand down her heated face, an amused snort escaped her at the idea. " _Just how often does Rachel get asked out? For her to automatically assume that I was... The number must be exponential."_

"Are you alright? You look real red…" Rachel placed a hand on Max's shoulder, concerned eyes peering into Max's own nervous gaze.

"Is it possible if we could talk in your dorm?" Max asked, hoping this wasn't sounding all too weird for Rachel.

To her surprise Rachel guided her over to the girl's dormitory without a thought, though Rachel kept on voicing out her worries to her new friend as they walked. "Not gonna lie, Jack, you're kinda freaking me out here."

"Trust me, I know this is weird but I'll explain everything."

As the two of them made for the dorm entrance, they had the misfortune of running into a second year student Max did not have the patience to deal with. They were sitting on the steps to the dorm's entrance, with their phone in hand outstretched.

"Back so soon from kissing Jefferson's ass?" They said, after finishing their selfie. The student now stood up in the way, arms crossed with narrowed eyes. That stance was all too familiar, from the blonde pixie haircut and the expensive clothing, there was no doubt about it.

" _Are you for real?_ _ **Victoria Chase**_ _... Of all the luck."_ Max inwardly groaned out, she couldn't help but visibly roll her eyes when Victoria sent a judgmental glare over to her.

"I see that you're sneaking in another punk." Victoria stated with some distaste in her tone, her nose upturned slightly. "I'm hoping this one has better manners than the last one."

"Oooh, so moody today, Vick." Rachel smirked defiantly at Victoria, not at all phased by her snide comment. "I'm sure standing guard of the entrance like a troll can be off putting sometimes. How's Nathan by the way?"

Max thinned her lips to prevent herself from bursting out in uncontrolled laughter, " _The look on Victoria's face is beyond hysterical,_ _ **ha**_ _!"_

Victoria recovered from the insult, she was now sneering at Rachel, "You think you've got everyone fooled into thinking you're hot-shit, but you don't fool me, Rachel Amber. Stay away from Nathan, and go die."

"Your voice is annoying as I remember it.." Max mumbled lowly to herself, Victoria caught it though and aimed her glare onto her new target.

"Come again?" She dared Max to repeat herself, her voice holding a deadly threat. A poor attempt in scaring Max.

Max answered back flippantly, giving the rich girl an uncaring stare. "I said: Go fuck your-selfie, kid."

Rachel did an 'ouch' expression with her lips, fanning herself with a hand. "Uff, _**I**_ even felt that burn."

Victoria stood there appalled, she wanted to retaliate but the two of them walked by her like she wasn't there. "How dare you—This isn't over, Amber!" She declared loud enough for them to hear beyond closed doors. Victoria was now by herself, letting out a frustrated yell.

Max was wincing as she followed Rachel, who was howling with laughter. " _That felt so good, I've always wanted to say that to her stupid face. I just hope it doesn't come back to haunt me later."_

Rachel was holding her sides as she allowed herself and her friend into her dorm. "Jack—That was—Haha! Oh, fuck!" She tried to express between laughter, words couldn't possibly describe the epicness that whole scene was.

Now calming her intense mirth down, Rachel wipes her tears and grins wildly at Max, "You're not only cool, but you're also hilarious. Maybe I _**should**_ say yes to that date."

"Hm, with that joke just now that would make both of us comedians." Max pushed back with a disapproving look.

"And she does it again! Ouch, Jack, the rejection!" Rachel hooted, clutching her chest in mock heartbreak.

The two of them laughed together for a few moments. Seeing that they were now alone in private, Max switched her serious mode on. She needed to somehow get through to Rachel about staying away from that sleazeball, Jefferson. Max took a moment to collect her thoughts, while she did so she looked around the small dorm. It was your typical teen living here, one could obviously tell by the way it was decorated. It screamed 'Riot!' but it was also giving off the modern hipster style. One thing was for sure, it was cleaner and much more organized than Chloe's room.

"You got a nice place here, Rachel." Max said honestly, eyeing the little neon lights hanging above the couch area where Rachel was now sitting comfortably at.

"Thanks, but I'm sure you got more in that head of yours than my feng shui." Rachel said with a bright smile, she waited patiently for Jack to speak her mind.

"I really was worried about you, after the conversation we had." Max began to talk, already feeling how long winded this speech was about to be. "Rachel, I've seen _**so many**_ girls your age fall into the wrong crowds. Most of those girls were, well, stupid."

Rachel chuckled, "Geez, tell me how you really feel, Jack."

Max shook her head and smiled sheepishly back, "You're not though, you're very different. I can tell that you're the type of person that see's the good in everything and everyone." The student leaned back on the couch, her expression softened as eyes watched Max go on with her talk. "That's an insanely rare trait that not everyone has the big enough heart for, but like any heart that can feel… it can be taken advantage of." Max went on, pushing her limits more to see where things turned.

"...I know about you and the drug dealer, Rachel."

At this Rachel widened her eyes in shock, before she would protest, Max had then added that she was in Arcadia for longer before and had seen their interaction at the Two Whales diner one day. This effectively shut Rachel up and could only now allow 'Jack' to continue.

"I'm sure he's a nice guy when he wants to be, but why get yourself involved with someone like him?" She asked with confusion.

"Remember how I mentioned my best friend last night?" Rachel brought up Chloe, explaining to her how the blue-haired punk borrowed a large sum of money from Frank. Rachel went on about their shared dreams of leaving Arcadia Bay, to go out to L.A. and start a new life there. For that to happen they needed a lot of money, and given the issue where Chloe got kicked out of school and finding jobs in a small town like Arcadia was not the most easiest thing in the world currently—Chloe got desperate and took the loan from him, despite Rachel's disapproval.

"Like you said, Frank is nice when he wants to be, but when it comes to money… He doesn't beat around the bush. Him and Chloe started to butt heads, and Frank began to get violent. The threats were empty to her, but I knew better… So yeah, you can guess where this is going. I started sleeping with him, hoping that he'd give Chloe some space. At least, until she manages to pay him back. Since she _**is**_ my best friend, Frank would want to keep me happy and allowed her some room to breathe."

Max gaped slightly at Rachel, " _Whoa… She was sleeping with Frank to get him to lay off Chloe? Wowsers, talk about taking one for the team."_

"Things started to change though…" Rachel sighed out, she began to wonder why she was spilling so much to a stranger. A friend she had only just met the other night.

"You fell in love with him." Max smiled sadly at her, feeling for the girl but at the same time for Chloe. Remembering how devastated she was when they found out about Rachel and Frank being together.

"Ha, love?" She huffed out a laugh while shaking her head. "I don't even know if that's what this is. I learned to care about him, that's for sure. He's not at all a bad person. Sure, he's not the greatest person either but…" Rachel admitted with a thoughtful look in her eyes. "It's all sort of confusing right now, me and Frankie might not last for long anyways…"

Max sighed, rubbing the back of her neck. " _Got Jefferson on the brain already, Rach?"_ Perhaps she should lay off of Rachel, for now. "Look, all I am asking is… Be careful. Don't trust people so easily."

"Even people like you?" Rachel interrogated sharply, though she only meant it as a light tease. In a way, she was still making it clear to Jack that although they were now friends, she was still a stranger to her.

"Even people like me… And sleazy teachers." Max laid it out openly, not at all regretting the comment.

"Not sure what you're talking about." Rachel seemed unphased, but Max knew the younger girl was processing her words rapidly behind the calm facade.

"Right… I'm gonna head out, I said all I wanted to." Max made for the door but stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning around she faces Rachel, who seemed too excited for Max's comfort.

"There's a party later tonight, at the beach near the big lighthouse. I think you should come, it would be so much fun if you did." She invited her, a charming smile taking over her face. It was hard for Max to say no, though she found it odd that the party was in the middle of a school week. She didn't see any harm in it, since it wasn't an official Vortex Club party and it would mean another chance to talk to Rachel again.

"I'll think about it." Max left with those parting words.

* * *

The car door opened and in came Max.

Kyra was giving Max a blank look when she stepped inside the car, "A party, really?"

Max was about to ask her how she knew that, but then realized that her and Lane can watch her from wherever they were. She explained to Kyra that it wasn't going to be for fun, but to observe and to be sure Rachel wasn't up to anything major that could potentially lead her to the path of her own death. The Fate hummed in thought, she couldn't tell Max it was a bad idea, but it wasn't exactly the best one either. She would not interfere though, this was something the mortal had to experience on her own, behind her own permanent choices.

When they got back to the apartment Lane had been waiting in the kitchen, she was keeping herself busy making lunch. She wore an apron to cover her tight fitted clothing, keeping her black shirt clean.

A big grin was on her face as she assembled together a perfectly made sub, "Oh! Lucy you're home!" She chimed jokingly as Max walked in with an arched eyebrow.

"You made us food?" Max asked in pleasant surprise, she hadn't realized how hungry she was until now. She was in so much of a rush that she had skipped breakfast.

"Technically I made lunch for _**you**_ , figured you'd be starving after today. We sure know you'll need the strength for later tonight." Lane slid the plate over to Max on the countertop as the girl sat down, the Fate had explained that food was already stocked up in the fridge.

Max took a bite out of her sub, " _Whoa, just how talented is Lane? A tattoo artist_ _ **and**_ _a sandwich artisan too?! Like it wasn't enough she's an immortal cosmic being… This is so good!"_ Max thought with satisfaction as she began to eat the sub with more gusto.

Kyra eyed Lane for a moment, she was leaning a hip against the kitchen countertop next to the silver eyed Fate. She could see they were practically twinkling, Kyra knew that look all too well. "What's got you so excited?"

"Whatever do you mean, Kyra?" Lane giggled as she removed the apron, she tossed it over her shoulder and ran slender fingers through her midnight hair coyly.

The Fates were discussing among themselves as Max munched on her sub, she would stare between the two women. They were talking lowly, so Max couldn't quite catch what they were saying. All she could hear was something about Lane being pumped about tonight. Kyra seemed stoic, though there was a glimmer of brief amusement in her eyes when she placed her hand over Lane's mouth to silence her excited rambling.

"You've still got a few hours before the beach party, what will you be doing until then?" Kyra asked casually, ignoring Lane's muffled protests behind her hand.

Max shrugged, she had a thought about sneaking a peek at Chloe again but that would be an even bigger risk still of being caught. For Max it was too soon to confront the blue-haired punk, " _You can't keep avoiding her forever..."_ She mentally chided herself.

Lane finally removed Kyra's hand away from her mouth after threatening to bite it, "You're so rude…" She whined to Kyra before turning her attention to Max with still excited eyes, "I have an idea! Let's work on your attire for that late night bash."

Max couldn't fight off the smile on her face, " _I can almost see an invisible tail wagging behind Lane, she's being awfully cheerful."_ Not able to resist it anymore, Max nodded her head in approval.

Kyra grimaced, fearing for the poor Photographer now. "You're going to regret that—"

"Oh yeah! Score!" Lane was already plotting, a big toothy grin evident on her face as she ran into the other room. "I'll get the black nail polish!"

Max's eyes widened at the announcement. "Wait, what?!"

A couple of hours passed by, Kyra was lazily reading a book as she sat in bed. Even though she appeared bored, she was internally enjoying Max's struggle with Lane's spontaneous outfit montage. After countless outfits put on, Max finally received a thumbs up from Lane. Kyra had also approved of the choice, without glancing away from her book.

They settled with Max wearing a tight fitted, red tank top. The design of a sugar skull printed on it popped in bold, black lines. Lane had somehow convinced Max to wear a checkerboard pattern belt, keeping her black skinny jeans snug around her hips. The jeans were ripped open at her knees, exposing some of her skin there. Completing the outfit, Lane had lent her a pair of black combat boots. Max had finished tying up the laces, the boots reached just below her leg calves. She wasn't use to wearing boots like these, though Lane was insistent she wear them.

Lane whistled with a smirk, she inspected her handy work. She had made sure the eyeliner was applied properly on Max, no smudges on sight. "You're going to turn some heads tonight."

"You do know I'm going to the beach, right? Not a concert?" Max teased her, smiling shyly at Lane's compliments.

Lane checked Max's nails, the black polish had dried. "Can't a reincarnation of destiny have some fun? I don't get to do this often."

Kyra rolled her eyes and put her book down, she brought it to Max's attention that it was time for her to leave. Grabbing her phone and keys, Max turns to the Fates with a suspicious look. "You wouldn't happen to know something about this party that I don't, would you?"

"We can't tell you anything in detail, remember? We're only allowed to tell you what's necessary." Kyra explained neutrally.

"Sorry, kiddo. You gotta go with the flow." Lane said with an apologetic smile, "Though you're gonna thank me for the makeover, just know that."

Max furrowed her eyebrows at Lane, completely confused at what she meant. Putting her suspicions aside, Max left the apartment and made her way on the road towards her destination.

* * *

The night air was still warm, around this time this place would normally be empty but the faint sound of music boomed loud enough to rebel against the effect of waves crashing. Along the sand there were multiple bonfires, plenty of teens from the ages of seventeen to nineteen were around. More than likely drinking and doing drugs, it was only Max's guess. She had parked near the boardwalk, she sat there for a few minutes in deep thought when her eyes landed over towards the cliff in the distance. The tall lighthouse stood there, in the dark. It's light had long ago went out, no longer guiding ships at night.

" _I can't tell if seeing it makes me happy or sad."_ Max sighed out to herself, she stepped out of the car and texted Rachel.

She walked down to the sand and did well enough to look calm as she walked through the dancing crowd. With that loud techno playing on the beach, Max couldn't help feeling like she was back at the Vortex Club party. Though there wasn't any expensive DJ's the Prescotts bought playing the songs, an old beat up stereo set was propped up on a table doing a well enough job pumping adrenaline into the already high and drunk party goers. There were other tables set up for drinks, while another was being used for what seemed to be a sloppy beer pong game.

Max could smell the weed mingling with the sea salt air, " _Typical party, even now smoking is not my thing still."_

"You actually came!"

Max finally ran into Rachel, the girl was disheveled and skin damp with sweat. Her clothes were sticking to her form, " _She must have been dancing all night, despite being a mess she still looks naturally pretty. She really can be a model without even trying… What the fuck?"_ Max smiled awkwardly at her friend who caught her in an unsuspecting hug.

Rachel was either high already or she was genuinely happy to see Max here, she gave her a tight squeeze before pulling back to reveal her beaming face. "Come on! Let's get some drinks in you!" She hollered over the music.

They got to the tables and Rachel had served Max a drink in a red plastic cup, "You look damn good, in case you didn't know." She smirked at her, hazel eyes giving a once over with Max's choice of outfit, "I stand by what I said, you and Chloe have got to meet. Wonder where she went..."

Max almost did a spit take while sipping her drink, "What?! She's h-here?" Her voice was panicked, she glanced around the beach in search of a blue head.

Without noticing Max's reaction, Rachel swayed her hips. Her body vibrating with the beat of the music, "Hmm, you know? I have no fucking idea! She probably was and then bailed, not really sure. Chloe prefers diving into mosh pits than mingling at these types of parties."

Max was relieved to find that there wasn't any signs of Chloe, perhaps Rachel was right and the punk-girl did leave. She stood there next to a dancing Rachel, she allowed herself to laugh when the younger girl tried to get Max to dance too.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Rachel Amber. The Party Fiend."

Max felt her skin crawl when she recognized the voice, she looked over her shoulder to find that it was Nathan Prescott shoving people out of his way to get to Rachel. Max immediately looked away, not wanting to make too much eye contact with the rich kid.

"Oh, Nate! What're you doing here? This isn't a Vortex party." Rachel hooked an arm over Max's shoulders, keeping the girl close as she addressed him. She had a cocky smile on her face when Nathan eyed the two of them, clearly confused as to who the other girl was. He ignored her and kept his sights on Rachel, he had been watching her dancing around all night and felt the need to talk with her.

"I _**am**_ the Vortex party." He gloated, remarking that wherever he goes the Vortex club would go as well.

"I'm cool enough to hangout at other parties not being endorsed by my father, besides… You're here." His intentions were obvious when he handed Rachel a fresh drink, his arm outstretched with the red cup in hand waiting for her to take it.

Rachel chuckled at Nathan's flirty comment, she had to hand it to him, he was persistent. This boy has been trying to get her to talk and hangout for months, if Victoria was around she'd be livid. Max was glancing at the drink in Nathan's hand, and then back to Rachel with concerned blue eyes that went unnoticed by her. " _Crap! I don't like the look of this… This isn't the Vortex party Rachel ended up being drugged at, but he could still attempt it ahead of time. What should I do? Think, Maxine!"_ She panicked in her mind when Rachel reached out for the drink.

Right as fingers grazed the cup, Max pulled her back and smacked the drink roughly into Nathan's shirt. The teenagers surrounding them stopped what they were doing, everyone looked startled at the fact that someone had dared to mess with Nathan Prescott. Some were amused and others pitied the poor soul that was about to experience hell. After a long pause of silence—save for the music laying in the background—Nathan exploded.

"... _ **What the actual fuck**_?!" He roared in mix shock and rage. Nathan's angry eyes looked down at his now soaked shirt, it was clearly ruined now.

Rachel was laughing hysterically, not at all bothered by Jack's actions. It was about time someone knocked Nathan's ego down a few pegs. She was holding onto Jack's shoulder with a hand, as she held her own side with the other. She kept herself in balance by doing this, she was doubling over at this point, her laughter was too much to handle. The look on _**Nathan's**_ face was too much to handle.

Max stood there with wide eyes, " _I am on a streak today pissing off these rich kid assholes."_ Though insulting Victoria seemed safer than messing with Nathan, who she knows has a twitchy trigger finger.

Nathan was aiming a deadly stare at the girl who had just humiliated him in front of so many, his face was bright red from the bobbling rage that was about to be unleashed on her. By instinct Max grabbed Rachel's hand, she mustered up the guts to smirk back confidently at him.

"Sorry, Rachel doesn't take drinks from creepy little fuck boys." Max said mockingly in a sweet tone, she pushed by him with Rachel in tow.

Nathan sputtered, completely stunned at what just happened. He wanted to stop her and show her exactly why no one fucked with Nathan Prescott, but there were too many people around. All he could do was stand there seething as the girl and Rachel disappeared into the still dancing crowd.

The onlookers that were near the scene gaped dramatically at what they've just witnessed, all of them plus Nathan had one common thought. Who the hell was that chick?

Rachel was showering Jack with honest praising, still giggling with amusement. She was jumping around her to the beat of the music, "Another one bites the dust! You're on fire, Jack! Woo!"

While Rachel celebrated, Max was having a mental freak out. A thousand mile stare was on her face, " _Holy fuck, I can't believe I said that to Nathan in front everyone! I may have just added to his psychotic tendencies with that, so much for not being reckless. Wish I still had my rewind powers. That's_ _ **two**_ _people I've pissed off today…"_

The night could not possibly get any worse than this.

"Yo! Chloe!" Rachel yelled over the music with excitement, a hand waving down the blue-haired girl that was walking along the boardwalk.

Max involuntarily turned around to hide her face, her hair curtained over the side of it. She hissed under breath to herself, "Are you _**fucking**_ kidding me?!"

" _Calm down, Max. Maybe it wasn't Chloe and Rachel is just seeing things_ — _Yes, that's right_ _! Alcohol and weed does that! You're going to look back and see that Chloe isn't_ _ **really**_ _there."_ Max had momentarily glanced over her shoulder, she immediately regretted the movement. Chloe was in fact there walking towards them, and Max couldn't look away.

The punk was exactly how Max remembered her, not only was the object of her unfulfilled romance alive—She was just beautiful. Her navy blue beanie adorned the top of her head, the short blue hair that framed her pale and slender face. Max noticed the punker wasn't wearing her usual black jacket, she was only wearing a dark blue sleeveless shirt with white designs on the front. Her legs were covered by faded ripped jeans, with suspenders hanging loosely around her hips and down her thighs. Black combat boots lightly kicked the sand under her feet as she walked off the boardwalk and into the beach.

Chloe spotted them, she grinned widely at Rachel as she sauntered across the sand. She was getting closer and closer, and Max was growing nervous with every step. She wasn't ready for this, she can't do this now. Just as Chloe entered through the wall of dancing people, Max was already gone.

Rachel was confused and she was looking around for her friend, she turned to Chloe who was eyeing her questionably. The blonde began her excited rants when the punk-girl held her by the shoulder, "Chloe! Where have you been?! You should have seen it—Holy shit! It was—Ugh! Where were you?!"

"Chillax, chica. I needed some cigs, couldn't smoke the shitty brand peeps were carrying around here." Chloe explained, shaking the small box of cigarettes as evidence. "What's up with you? You're all hyped up." She looked at Rachel, an amused smirk growing on her lips. "I think you're done getting blasted and blazed for the night..."

"As if! I'm fine, really. But you missed it—Jack was here! She was such a badass, Chloe! Man, you bailed on me for cigarettes?" She pouted, disappointed that her best friend had lost the chance to meet her new friend from the bar.

Rachel was upset that Jack had ditched her just as Chloe showed up, she wanted to say that Jack was being shy but it was still so weird for her to up and leave without saying goodbye. Rachel had told Chloe the night they met about her, her best friend really wanted to meet this Jack girl after Rachel was done gushing over the mysterious older chick.

"So it _**was**_ her then, the girl that was next to you? Some badass, she ran off like she saw a ghost or some shit." Chloe commented coolly, she was peeved slightly that Rachel's mood turned when the supposed 'new friend' had just ditched them.

"Don't judge, maybe she went to go get cigarettes too." Rachel teased back and at the same time defending Jack.

"Ya don't say? Well, it would be extremely rude of me to not offer some of mine. Wouldn't it?" Chloe said decidedly, letting Rachel know she would be right back while she trekked through the crowd of drunkards.

Meanwhile, Max had walked off hurriedly down the shore away from the party. She was far enough away that she could barely hear the music, not once did she look back. She slowed down her steps, but her mind and even more so her heart, was going at a rapid pace.

Max laid a hand over her chest, she could feel the fast beating there. " _Chloe, I'm sorry… I'm such a coward."_ She was mad with herself, she realized she was doing the same exact thing she had done when she first came back to Arcadia Bay.

She avoided the idea of finding her best friend, she kept on putting it off. Now she looks at herself, doing it yet again. Had she not grown up at all? Being back here, seeing Chloe—Even from afar—It made Max feel like she was still the seventeen year old girl. The awkward, shy and non-confrontational girl. She can take down Victoria Chase with witty insults, and purposely shove beer all over Nathan Prescott while smiling, but when it came to facing Chloe? She turns into a mess of emotions.

Max had stopped in her steps, she stood there near the shoreline. The water would brush the tips of her boots as it brushed over the sand, she stared ahead to the ocean. A question burning in her throat, she groaned out in frustration as she held the sides of her head with both hands.

Max asked herself out loud, as if the crashing waves would have an answer for her. "Just what the fuck am I doing?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

Max froze where she was, she knew for a fact waves didn't talk back. Slowly she turned her head towards the sound of the familiar voice. There Chloe was, arms crossed with stern blue eyes staring straight at the girl. Chloe wasn't sure, she only saw the girl for a few seconds from far away, but she could tell there was something familiar about the girl hanging around Rachel. Chloe was only a few feet away from her, but she took a slow step forward as the words spilled out.

"Fuck, I knew it. I wasn't having a weird trip out." Chloe tilted her head to the side as she got closer, causing Max to take a few steps back away.

Her eyes narrowed, there was a hint of surprise in Chloe's voice. "Is that… Is that really you?"

There was no answer, Max just stood there with a still rapidly beating heart. She barely heard Chloe's voice due to the sound of it thumping in her eardrums. Though Max was more focused on Chloe's face and body language rather than the tone of her voice. " _Shit! Shit! Shit! She's in front of me, she looks so shocked… Oh man, she also looks angry."_

"Hey! I'm talking to you!" Chloe yelled, annoyed that the girl before her has yet said a single word to her.

"Don't yell at me, Chloe!" Max hollered back, causing the punk to flinch in reaction.

Chloe stared wide eyed, arms dropping at her sides. "It _**is**_ you… Max?" She dared to say the name again, with more assurance. "Max Caulfield."

"Y-Yeah, it's me…" Max finally admitted in defeat, eyes staring down at the sand beneath her boots. The sound of her own name coming from Chloe almost stopped Max's breathing, her mouth had even gone dry.

Chloe's shock was settling down, a bitter amusement was taking place in her voice. "Heh, I guess Seattle sucked hard, huh?"

"You could say that…" Max rubbed the back of her neck as she fidgeted, she finally glanced up to see Chloe as they continued to exchange words.

"And coming back to Arcadia Bay is any better?" Chloe asked incredulously.

" _With you still here? Yeah, it is better."_ Max thought to herself, she squashed the urge to express it vocally.

Chloe went on, her questions stacking up high like a tower. "How long have you been here? _**Why**_ are you even back? I can only imagine that you came for Blackwell, right? Tsk, figures..." She scoffed, shaking her head.

"That's not true, I wouldn't be caught dead in that school." Max blurted out without thinking.

Chloe was taken aback by the statement. She knew just how much Max loved Photography, Blackwell had the best scholarships in pursuit of Photography careers. She had known that Max would return to Arcadia Bay for that school, someday anyways. Though that was not the case, Max had just told her she wouldn't ever attend the academy.

"I mean—" Max stammered for words, "I _**did**_ have an interest before, but not anymore. I'm not here for Blackwell." She explained to Chloe with as much honesty she could force out.

"So what's your deal then?" Chloe questioned, she was getting frustrated with her. She then gave Max a warning, "I swear if you say you came here for—"

"I came here for you, Chloe." Max finished her friend's sentence, she gulped thickly in apprehension at what she just admitted.

Chloe's mouth fell open, a laugh escaped her. She turned around, as if she was addressing an audience with arms stretched out.

"Got any hidden cameras? 'Cause this has got to be some kind of a joke." Pacing a few times, she turned back again to face Max. She looked at her long and hard, "Five years, Max. Without a text or a call. Sorry if I find this hard to believe."

" _Merciless as ever."_ Max inwardly winced, the words from her best friend stinging. "Give me a break! You didn't exactly attempt any form of communication back either, I don't blame you though. We were _**both**_ going through changes."

"I guess those changes included dumping me from your life." Chloe replied back casually, though there was an edge to her words. She wasn't letting up, she wanted to make her point across to Max that she was deeply hurt by the abandonment all those years ago.

This was déjà vu all over for Max, but she wasn't going to allow Chloe to guilt trip her like last time when they first had their reunion. Because this time, everything is going to be different. She was here for her friend, not for Blackwell, not for a scholarship nor for a teacher she use to admire. She was here for Chloe, and she was going to stop at nothing to prove it to her.

"That's not true, Chloe." Max defended.

Chloe continued to lash out, "Bullshit. You thought you'd hook up with all these art pricks in Seattle. Didn't happen, though."

"That's it, Chloe! Just—just shut up!" She snapped back. Man, it hurt hearing that the first time but the second time still hurt Max just as much.

"God, you don't know _**anything**_!" Max was losing her cool, " _She legit doesn't know anything, idiot! None of this has happened yet, it never did and it never will. Don't get frustrated with her, it's not her fault."_ She tried to rationalize in her mind, she didn't want their conversation to turn into an argument. Especially since Chloe literally had no idea of what Max had been through.

Though the more Chloe was pushing her the more it was starting to piss Max off. Maybe before, the old Max would have bowed down and taken every lash Chloe whipped out with her words, but this Max isn't rolling over and taking any of it. She kept on her emotional rant, all Chloe could do was stand back with eyebrows raised upwards.

"I fucked up, I'll admit it. I should have called, texted—Sent you letters even!"

"Then why didn't you?" Chloe asked, this time with a softer tone.

"To be honest, I was scared to. The day I left, you didn't exactly make things clear if you hated me for life or not. I couldn't blame you though, a lot happened during that time and it was just all too much." Max expressed a bit of how she felt, she wanted to say more beyond that. To tell Chloe just how much she was hurting when she left Arcadia… The suffering she went through when Chloe died.

"Don't get me wrong, you can't really blame it all on me." Max corrected, "But you're allowed to be mad at me, hate me even for all those years without reaching out to you. I just don't want you to think that I purposely left you to fuck you over. I didn't abandon you, Chloe. I never stopped thinking about you. Not once."

Max bit her lip, she braved herself to step up closer to Chloe. She was now only a few steps away, any closer and Max would be able to feel the other girl's breath on her. "I want to make things right. I just wanted to see you again, y-you have no clue…" She struggled with her words when she felt a tightness grow in her throat. " _You have no clue how badly I want to hug you right now."_

Chloe was staring at Max unblinkingly, not certain of what to make of all this emotional revelation. She could tell Max was truly torn up, the girl looked like she was on the verge of tears. Now that she was looking at her with less rage and hurt. Chloe noticed something was off with Max, she knew it had been five years since she last saw her childhood best friend. Hell, Chloe knew she herself did not look the same at all. She was breaking her head over Max, she couldn't tell but there was something not quite right about her.

She then remembered Rachel had told her about this 'Jacqueline' woman at the bar, who somehow legally bought drinks for the both of them. Nothing was making any sense to Chloe, all she did was shake her head at Max.

"You wanna make things right?" Chloe asked back, "How about you start explaining yourself… Why the hell were you passing off as someone else while getting involved with my friends?" She called out Max, she wanted to know why she had tricked Rachel.

Max cursed out mentally, she knew Chloe wasn't stupid. She just wasn't ready to answer all these questions on the fly.

"I didn't know Rachel was your friend. At least, not at first." She lied, in her best calmed tone. "As for the fake name, really… I just didn't want anyone to know I was back in town, I wanted to be careful. Maybe I was being too paranoid, I didn't mean to lie to anyone. Especially Rachel, who's been nothing but nice to me." Max smoothed out, before adding, "But if anyone was going to find out I was back, you were always going to be the first to know about it, Chloe."

Chloe took a moment to process everything that was being said to her, she stared at Max and then over to the sand on the ground. To the waters rushing into the shore and further out towards the ocean. She wanted to look at anything else but Max.

She looked like a lost child, unsure of what to do or say now. She shouldn't even be giving Max the time of day, she should hate her and tell her to fuck off. She had always pictured herself giving Max the worst treatment if they were ever going to meet again. Though none of that was what she felt towards her childhood best friend. Sure, she was frustrated with Max and she's still hurt from the time the girl left town. Though that's different, things have changed.

Max was back in Arcadia Bay, she was standing right in front of her. In the flesh. Not only was she here, but she was apologizing to her. She came back _**for**_ Chloe, how could she continue to be an asshole to her?

"You're making it hella hard for me to stay mad at you." Chloe joked while stuffing her hands in her pockets, finally looking back at Max with a small smirk on her face.

Max took three quick steps forward, she practically ran into Chloe as she wrapped up arms around the taller girl by the waist. Chloe stumbled back slightly from the impact, she blinked a few times in surprise. She had not expected the sudden affection, Max was normally so shy when it came to physical contact. Though here she was, arms hugging Chloe tightly while burying her face into her shoulder.

At first she hesitated but Chloe soon held Max back, her own arms wrapping over the shorter girl's shoulders.

Max was mentally thanking whatever force of nature allowed her to have this moment, " _Chloe's really here, alive and breathing. This… This feels nothing like my dreams."_ She sighed out contently when she felt her best friend hug her back. " _This is better beyond anything I've dreamt. This is_ _ **real**_ _."_

Chloe was feeling slightly awkward at the prolonged embrace that Max didn't seem to be stepping out of any time soon. Clearing her throat Chloe gingerly grabbed Max's arms off her waist and brought her back at arm's length away from her torso.

"You just got here and you're already groping me." She teased, making Max blush easily.

Max scolded in a deadpan tone. "Please don't ruin the moment."

The two of them shared light laughter, then found themselves standing in silence when their laughter died down. Neither girls knew what more to say, they looked at each other for a few seconds. They both realized that they were seeing each other for the first time ever, though under different circumstances. Max is seeing Chloe for the first time after their adventure together, after their shared kiss. After her death and Max's grief for almost four years long. While Chloe hadn't seen her since their childhood, after her father's death and after Max was forced to move away and leave her behind. For the both of them, things were extremely complicated for two dissimilar reasons.

"Max, I can't promise that things will be the same." Chloe finally said to break the silence, careful in not making her words sound too harsh.

Max nodded in agreement, in her mind though, she didn't like hearing it out loud. " _Of course things won't be the same, what have I been thinking this whole time? That Chloe would throw herself at me and we'd ride off into the sunset? Good grief, Max..."_

"It's been too many years and we're not kids anymore. I'm different now and… You're _**hella**_ different for sure. Dude, seriously—What happened to you?" She asked in awe, looking at Max from head to toe.

"What do you mean?" Max hugged her arms around herself, a self conscious reaction to Chloe's scrutiny.

"You look like the cover of Hipster-Punk-Girl-Dot-Com."

"That's supposed to be my line." Max remarked back with a laugh, she reached up and lightly pulled on Chloe's short fringes that framed her face. "You're the one with blue anime hair."

Chloe scoffed while playfully swatting Max's hand away from her hair. She pointed out that Max's hair looked great in it's current length, and her choice of style really did suit her. Chloe liked seeing that her friend had grown out of her shell, Max seemed a bit more expressive and stronger to her.

" _Was this what Lane meant by thanking her for the makeover? I knew those two were up to something... "_ Max realized that the Fates were aware of her encounter with Chloe tonight, they must have also sensed her hesitation in meeting the punk girl again. Maybe she should thank Lane after all.

They went on about each other's appearances. Chloe could tell Max was way more different as she had suspected, she was unsure of how to explain it still.

Though Max appeared not just different, but she seemed older somehow. Older than what a seventeen year old should look like. Maybe she didn't _**exactly**_ look old, but the way she would stand, her mannerisms and the way she spoke with honesty. It all felt odd to Chloe.

She knew the other girl had always been the more mature one out of the two, despite Chloe being one year older than her. Why does it feel like Max has more years over Chloe than she should? This is going to bother her for a long time, she knew there were more questions needing answers but for now, she was willing to let the interrogations rest. She had her best friend back and a lot of catching up was in order.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sup peeps, sorry for the delayed update. Really, I don't have a set time for any of my updates. Only do them when I can if I'm not too busy. This one is slightly longer than the last one, I'm doing more dialogues as I write the story so please let me know if I need to ease up on dialogue or to stick with the style as it is. Thanks for the positive feedback thus far, it really helps with motivation! Drop any reviews, all are welcomed and appreciated!
> 
> Please check out Jimmy Eat World - Polaris it's a great song by them, and it inspired a lot of the emotions I wrote up for Max during her talk with Chloe. I dunno, thought it fit in certain parts of lyrics lol anywho!
> 
> Special thanks to my Beta, you know who you are :)


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